Ron out to charm 'em
By DAVID BARNES
RONALDINHO brings Brazil's beautiful game to the Premiership insisting: "I am ugly but what I do have is charm."
Manchester United's £9million new boy aims to wow English football - and is sure to wow the ladies if he lives up to his playboy reputation.
The midfield genius fell in love with football as a kid when he watched Maradona juggling an orange with his feet.
Now he cannot wait to show off his own silky skills for United after moving from Paris St Germain.
Ronaldinho, 23, said: "I love the big occasion - the ones you think about days before.
"You think about the dribbles, the passes, the goals you are going to pull off.
"From the start of my career, every time there is a big match, I play well. I don't know why.
"My game is based on improvisation. Often a forward does not have the time to think too much.
"You have a second, rarely more, to decide whether to dribble, shoot or pass to the right or left. It is instinct that gives the orders."
Real Madrid's French superstar Zinedine Zidane is backing Ronaldinho to be a hit.
Zidane said: "Ronaldinho is total class - a very, very great player. He is quick, powerful and has extraordinary technical qualities.
"He is a dribbler but is also a player who can make the play for his team-mates.
"He's not really a No10, a true organiser. He's more a second attacker who can score goals and has the vision to make them - not to mention his ability with free-kicks."
But one thing Ronaldinho does NOT have is Zidane's mild temperament.
And strict United boss Alex Ferguson may find his differences with David Beckham mere child's play if ever confronted by an unhappy Ronaldinho.
Ronaldinho - full name Ronaldo de Assis Moreira - is a hot-blooded man who makes no secret of his love for nightclub music...preferably with a lady joining him on the dance floor.
He even has a samba named after him in Brazil.
But his last boss, PSG's Luis Fernandez, is now out of work after failing to get the most out of Ronaldinho in the French championship.
Fernandez went with insults ringing in his ears after substituting Ronaldinho in a recent match against Nantes.
The Brazilian ace had earlier been dropped by Fernandez after arriving late from Brazil following the winter break - with the pretext of having dental work on his prominent teeth.
And only the club's directors kept Ronaldinho in the team when he was found with a girl in his room late on the eve of a match in Lens last November.
Eric Lovey, Ronaldinho's Swiss co-agent and the man who was responsible for getting him to Paris from Brazil two years ago, says it upsets him when the player's private life gets highlighted.
Lovey said: "Ronaldinho is 23, Brazilian and single so he really does love going to the Montecristo on the Champs-Elysees and listening to latin music.
"Yes, he has girlfriends, but he does not spend every night out. I have seen him once with a beer in his hand and one other time with a glass of champagne.
"Brazilians drink less alcohol than Europeans. On the other hand, they are wild in bed.
"Between two rounds of the World Cup, they had a great time and some went with girls. It did not stop them winning the trophy."
Ronaldinho was just seven when he joined the Gremio club in the southern Brazil town of Porto Alegre.
He said: "I started at that age firing in free-kicks and corners with my dad watching me.
"I practised again and again getting the ball over a wall and into the right or left side of the net.
"When I first saw Maradona juggling with an orange I knew I wanted to be like him. When I was alone I spent my time juggling with a tennis ball. I still work at little things now. When I am at home in Paris I amuse myself by dribbling round the chairs."
Former Brazil coach Mario Zagallo said: "He has shown himself to be very gifted from childhood.
"The chrysalis has become a butterfly, physically and technically.
"He's the kind of kid who catches the eye when he's playing with his pals on waste ground.
"The bumps and the holes are a serious handicap for others but not for those who are chosen by the gods.
"Now when those prodigies start playing on good pitches, the technical gap gets even wider.
"Obviously he has taken time to adapt to different training methods and cultures since coming to Europe.
"But that's over now. He's ready to go."
Brazil great Zico revealed: "Ronaldinho took me as a model when he was young and often quotes my name. I am proud to have been an example for him.
"He plays practically in my position but in a different style because of his bigger size and love for great pushes forward.
"He loses nothing in subtlety and vision when he bursts through. He'll dynamite any defence when he prowls just within the limits of offside and then says goodbye to the opposition."
Ronaldinho scored two great goals in PSG's recent 3-0 win over Marseille - whose side included Belgian defender Daniel van Buyten, another target for Premiership clubs. Van Buyten admitted: "Ronaldinho is very hard to stop because his game is impossible to read. He never makes the same feint twice in a row.
"Even when I'd watched several videos of him he was still hard to counter. He is simply too unpredictable and sharp.
"You have to stick close to him because he doesn't like hard contact. He ought to guard against taking the mickey out of his opponents as well.
"He lets himself go a little bit that way and against us was lucky not to come up against more vicious opponents.
"He really doesn't need that to unsettle teams."
<a href="http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2002390000-2003260308,00.html" target="_blank">http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2002390000-2003260308,00.html</a>
By DAVID BARNES
RONALDINHO brings Brazil's beautiful game to the Premiership insisting: "I am ugly but what I do have is charm."
Manchester United's £9million new boy aims to wow English football - and is sure to wow the ladies if he lives up to his playboy reputation.
The midfield genius fell in love with football as a kid when he watched Maradona juggling an orange with his feet.
Now he cannot wait to show off his own silky skills for United after moving from Paris St Germain.
Ronaldinho, 23, said: "I love the big occasion - the ones you think about days before.
"You think about the dribbles, the passes, the goals you are going to pull off.
"From the start of my career, every time there is a big match, I play well. I don't know why.
"My game is based on improvisation. Often a forward does not have the time to think too much.
"You have a second, rarely more, to decide whether to dribble, shoot or pass to the right or left. It is instinct that gives the orders."
Real Madrid's French superstar Zinedine Zidane is backing Ronaldinho to be a hit.
Zidane said: "Ronaldinho is total class - a very, very great player. He is quick, powerful and has extraordinary technical qualities.
"He is a dribbler but is also a player who can make the play for his team-mates.
"He's not really a No10, a true organiser. He's more a second attacker who can score goals and has the vision to make them - not to mention his ability with free-kicks."
But one thing Ronaldinho does NOT have is Zidane's mild temperament.
And strict United boss Alex Ferguson may find his differences with David Beckham mere child's play if ever confronted by an unhappy Ronaldinho.
Ronaldinho - full name Ronaldo de Assis Moreira - is a hot-blooded man who makes no secret of his love for nightclub music...preferably with a lady joining him on the dance floor.
He even has a samba named after him in Brazil.
But his last boss, PSG's Luis Fernandez, is now out of work after failing to get the most out of Ronaldinho in the French championship.
Fernandez went with insults ringing in his ears after substituting Ronaldinho in a recent match against Nantes.
The Brazilian ace had earlier been dropped by Fernandez after arriving late from Brazil following the winter break - with the pretext of having dental work on his prominent teeth.
And only the club's directors kept Ronaldinho in the team when he was found with a girl in his room late on the eve of a match in Lens last November.
Eric Lovey, Ronaldinho's Swiss co-agent and the man who was responsible for getting him to Paris from Brazil two years ago, says it upsets him when the player's private life gets highlighted.
Lovey said: "Ronaldinho is 23, Brazilian and single so he really does love going to the Montecristo on the Champs-Elysees and listening to latin music.
"Yes, he has girlfriends, but he does not spend every night out. I have seen him once with a beer in his hand and one other time with a glass of champagne.
"Brazilians drink less alcohol than Europeans. On the other hand, they are wild in bed.
"Between two rounds of the World Cup, they had a great time and some went with girls. It did not stop them winning the trophy."
Ronaldinho was just seven when he joined the Gremio club in the southern Brazil town of Porto Alegre.
He said: "I started at that age firing in free-kicks and corners with my dad watching me.
"I practised again and again getting the ball over a wall and into the right or left side of the net.
"When I first saw Maradona juggling with an orange I knew I wanted to be like him. When I was alone I spent my time juggling with a tennis ball. I still work at little things now. When I am at home in Paris I amuse myself by dribbling round the chairs."
Former Brazil coach Mario Zagallo said: "He has shown himself to be very gifted from childhood.
"The chrysalis has become a butterfly, physically and technically.
"He's the kind of kid who catches the eye when he's playing with his pals on waste ground.
"The bumps and the holes are a serious handicap for others but not for those who are chosen by the gods.
"Now when those prodigies start playing on good pitches, the technical gap gets even wider.
"Obviously he has taken time to adapt to different training methods and cultures since coming to Europe.
"But that's over now. He's ready to go."
Brazil great Zico revealed: "Ronaldinho took me as a model when he was young and often quotes my name. I am proud to have been an example for him.
"He plays practically in my position but in a different style because of his bigger size and love for great pushes forward.
"He loses nothing in subtlety and vision when he bursts through. He'll dynamite any defence when he prowls just within the limits of offside and then says goodbye to the opposition."
Ronaldinho scored two great goals in PSG's recent 3-0 win over Marseille - whose side included Belgian defender Daniel van Buyten, another target for Premiership clubs. Van Buyten admitted: "Ronaldinho is very hard to stop because his game is impossible to read. He never makes the same feint twice in a row.
"Even when I'd watched several videos of him he was still hard to counter. He is simply too unpredictable and sharp.
"You have to stick close to him because he doesn't like hard contact. He ought to guard against taking the mickey out of his opponents as well.
"He lets himself go a little bit that way and against us was lucky not to come up against more vicious opponents.
"He really doesn't need that to unsettle teams."
<a href="http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2002390000-2003260308,00.html" target="_blank">http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2002390000-2003260308,00.html</a>
