Former Portugal manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, has revealed
how he broke the news to Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo about his
father’s death.
Ronaldo lost his father when he was 20 years old, two years
after he completed his transfer from Sporting to Manchester United.
Scolari said the sad news reached the Portugal camp ahead of
a clash with Russia in September 2005 and nobody knew how to share it with
Ronaldo.
He, however, summoned the courage to break it to the
five-time Ballon d’ Or winner in what was indeed an emotional moment.
Speaking to Sportsmail, Scolari, a former Chelsea manager,
said: “It was very hard. It was the moment that created a bond between us, a
bond that surpasses the coach-athlete relationship.
“When the news got to us, before a game against Russia,
nobody knew how to tell him [Ronaldo] and nobody wanted to.
“So I told them I would do it as I knew how it was to lose a
parent. I had lost mine a few years before.”
Despite hearing the sad news, Ronaldo didn’t break down.
Ronaldo even featured in the clash with Russia the following
day, which ended in a goalless draw before returning to Portugal.
Scolari added: “It was very sad, but it’s the kind of moment
that connects us as friends. The next day, Cristiano played a marvellous game
and returned to Portugal.
“He asked to play. He said: ‘I can’t do anything for my
father today, so I’ll play tomorrow and then I’ll go.'”
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com