'They Are Idols': Manchester United Forward Cristiano Ronaldo Reveals His Favourite Footballers

Cristiano Ronaldo once declared that he was the "best player in history". He has never liked to be compared with the footballing greats of yesteryear and has remained tight-lipped about which stars of the past he admires. But CR7 has finally come clean...

Manchester United ace Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed the names of his favourite footballers and it turns out that the two men he has idolised all his life are Brazilian legends.

The first name on the Portuguese superstar's list is that of his namesake and 2002 World Cup winner Ronaldo Nazario followed by another talismanic footballer from the South American nation - Ronaldinho.

The leading goal scorer in international football also insisted that something his idols have in common with him is that all three of them - Ronaldo, Nazario and Ronaldinho - have left an indelible mark on the sport.

And, although the two men from Brazil have fewer individual trophies than him, the Portuguese skipper found it in his heart to be magnanimous about their shortcomings.

"I don't like comparisons. I prefer to say that Ronaldo [Nazario], Ronaldinho and I have left our legacy, our history. I can say I won more individual trophies than them, but they both won the World Cup. I sympathise with them a lot," the ex-Juventus striker told ESPN.

Cristiano also disclosed that Nazario and Ronaldinho were the players he watched closely when he was growing up in Portugal, describing them as his "idols".

"These are two players I grew up watching. To say who is the best, who is second? It's not the most important thing. I prefer to stay with the fact that they are idols and they left a beautiful history in football," the Man U star concluded.