Ronaldo took a similar approach with opposing fans. “They have a go at you before and during games,” he says. “I’m aware of the booing, but I don’t pay any attention to it.”

Then there were Gerrard’s comments: “How could he do that to a team-mate? It’s unbelievable. If one of my team-mates did the same, I’d never speak to them again.” Has Ronaldo received any special treatment or provocation from players looking to exact retribution on behalf of the nation? “No, I’ve not heard anything from players – I’ve rarely had problems of any kind with opponents.”

The last year has not been without its problems, however. Between the England game and his frosty reception on returning to these shores, he was hit by a hat-trick of difficulties. He suffered his own World Cup heartbreak when Portugal went down to France in the semi-finals. He had false rape allegations levelled against him. Worst of all, his father, Dinis, died. “It’s been a difficult year,” he says philosophically. “There are things that could have gone better and I’ve had to take a step back and look at them. I’ve had to see it through, but things have turned out well.”

So well, in fact, that his form for Manchester United arguably makes him the hottest player on the planet at present. Six months ago, no one – even Ronaldo – expected that.



Last summer, Ronaldo was close to walking away from English football. “I should get out of Manchester,” he was quoted as saying. “The circumstances are not right. Nobody stood up for me. For some time I haven’t had any support from my chief executive [David Gill] or my coach [Sir Alex Ferguson]. They should have come out in my defence but no one did. My desire is to play in Spain. Will it be Real or Barcelona? It will be one of them.”

Back in the present, he tries to offer a considered explanation: “It was after the World Cup; I was hot-headed. We say things we don’t mean to say,” he says. “But it’s in the past. I’m at United, I’m happy and I want to continue.”

He denies even speaking to Barcelona and Real Madrid – “I’ve got a contract with United. If they speak to anyone it’s with my agent, not me. I told my agent I’m happy here and want to continue” – but does admit he’s a fan of Spanish football. “It’s a kind of football that attracts me, but at the moment I don’t want to leave here. I’ve been here for a while and every year I try to get
better and better. I’ve had to adapt to the culture, the football, the life and I think I’ve adapted well. It’s more or less what I expected to happen. I’m enjoying my career here.”

Yet questions remain about the likelihood of the boy from sunny Madeira remaining in rainy Manchester. It’s certainly the football, rather than the weather, or the food, that has helped him settle. “Of course life here is very different from in Portugal, but I was very well received by the players and it wasn’t a problem,” says Ronaldo. “I’m on good terms with everyone in the United team. There are three or four I get on best with, such as [Gabriel] Heinze and [Patrice] Evra and I get on quite well with [Rio] Ferdinand. They’re my friends in football, and away from football I’ve got my family, my cousins. I’ve got few friends, but the ones I’ve got are real friends.

“The United fans have also given me a lot,” he continues. “They’ve supported me whether we’ve played home or away, through good times and bad, and they still support me. It has been a big help.”

With Ronaldo, you feel it’s more than just a case of getting by with a little help from his friends, family and fans. Ask where he gets this extraordinary inner strength and supreme confidence from, though, and he’s the model of modesty. “I’ve coped with the pressure by working,” he says simply. “There are times when there really is a lot of pressure but I always try to feel good, be on form and concentrate on the game. It’s important to have belief in yourself and your ability, which I have.

“Football is something both mental and physical,” he continues. “There are days when you’re not good mentally and things don’t go so well, but it’s fundamental that you should be good physically on those days and vice-versa.”

Sounds simple. But really, how many players would be confident enough to grin broadly as they step up to take a potentially decisive penalty in a World Cup quarter-final shootout? “I tried to concentrate completely and do a good job,” says Ronaldo of his apparent total confidence. “I really wanted to score the goal and that was my only objective.”