Ronaldo can become world's best - Figo Saturday November 6, 2004
Portugese star Luis Figo
Manchester United’s Portuguese teen striker Cristiano Ronaldo has the skills to become the world’s best football player but will have to work hard if he wants to earn this title, Real Madrid star Luis Figo said on Thursday.
“I wish I had, at his age, the talent he displays. If I had had so much talent I would not have had to work as much as I did,” Figo told sports daily A Bola.
“He can become, within three or four years, if not earlier, one of the best, if not the best, player in the world.
“He will have to work hard for this because talent alone does not cause miracles. Throughout my life I have encountered many players with more talent than me but they did not go as far as I did,” the Real star added.
Figo announced in August that he would stop playing for Portugal after a 12-year career in which he was the country’s standout player having scored 31 goals in 110 caps, a national record for appearances which he shares with Fernando Couto.
Since Figo announced his retirement from international football, Ronaldo, 19, has been increasingly dubbed by the Portuguese press as Figo’s successor in the national squad.
Figo added that he intended to meet with Real Madrid chiefs next month to determine if the club plan to extend his current contract, which is set to expire in 2006.
- Source AFP
