Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
RASHFORD IS THE RIO THING
Ronaldo is a big fan of England kid who admits the Brazil legend has been a massive role model
IT is the ultimate endorsement. The kind every young striker dreams of.
For Marcus Rashford, praise from Brazil legend Ronaldo has been the stuff of fantasy.
Not just the seal of approval, either. The threetime World Player of the Year spotted similarities with the Manchester United youngster.
“I see some of myself in him,” said Ronaldo. “He has courage, is fast and very good with the ball.
“Strikers have to be hungry to score and I see that with him. He has an amazing future.”
No wonder Rashford will be living the dream when he faces the five-time world champions tomorrow night with England.
“I used to watch a lot of him growing up,” said the 20-year-old.
“He was obviously a top player who won a lot of things in his career, so when you know he’s saying good things about you then it really stands out.”
Like Rashford, Ronaldo exploded on to the scene as a teenager, going to the 1994 World Cup with Brazil – although he did not play – before joining Dutch club PSV.
In his first season there, he scored 35 times in 36 matches.
He went on to carry all before him for club and country, including two La Liga titles with Real Madrid, the Cup Winners’ Cup and the Copa Del Rey with Barcelona and the World Cup with Brazil in 2002, when he scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Germany in the final. He also played in the 1998 and 2006 finals and, until overtaken by Miroslav Klose, held the tournament all-time scoring record with 15 goals in 19 games.
Ronaldo, 41, is likely to be at Wembley to see in the flesh the player of whom he speaks so highly. Rashford explained just why the football icon has played such a big part in shaping his career.
“My first ever game I saw live, he was playing in it. It was at Old Trafford and I always remember it,’’ he said.
“It was in 2003. He scored a hat-trick. I was only young though, I was five. He was my brother Dwaine’s favourite player, that’s why I’ve grown up watching so much of him and his games.
“When you’re young you watch clips of the best players in the world and try to emulate them, so it just tends to happen naturally.”
Asked if he was aware of Ronaldo’s comments, first made last year, Rashford continued: “Yeah, I’ve seen a few bits from him from quite a while back.
“He always played free. No matter where he was playing, he played free and went out there and expressed himself. When you do that, that’s when you play your best football.”
Another Brazil great, Ronaldinho, praised Rashford on social media after they posed for pictures together.
Rashford added: “He was also a top, top player. Those sort of players are rare, but Brazil had two of them.
“I bumped into Ronaldinho in the summer. We were doing some training and he had some commercial stuff to do. He’s a really nice guy and obviously had a fantastic career.”
The United striker admits he will be in awe when Brazil rock up at Wembley. Tite’s side go into the friendly having beaten Japan 3-1 on Friday with goals from Neymar, Marcelo Vieira and Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus.
They have 10 wins from their 12 competitive games in the last 15 months.
Rashford added: “Who doesn’t enjoy watching the type of football they play? When at their best it’s unbelievable.”