+ A
A -
afp/ians
Lisbon
Cristiano Ronaldo says the key to his staggering success is believing nobody is better than he is -- and he advised his Portuguese teammates to adopt the same attitude.
The Real Madrid star made the comments as he accepted the Portuguese player of the year award in Lisbon.
"We should always believe we are the best," said Ronaldo, who led Portugal to the Euro 2016 title and who is now turning his gaze to the 2018 World Cup.
"You need to think big. I always believe that nobody is better than me, out on the pitch at least," he said.
"On a personal and collective level I have had a dream year. I won five trophies (Champions League, UEFA Supercup, World Club Cup, Spanish league title and the Spanish Supercup), the Ballon D'Or and the FIFA 'Best' title."
Ronaldo, who has been voted Ballon D'Or winner five times, is currently in Lisbon with the Portugal squad who play fellow World Cup qualifiers Egypt on Friday and the Netherlands three days later.
The 33-year-old has scored 79 goals in 147 games for Portugal and will lead the reigning European Champions to the 2018 World Cup, fitness permitting, where they will face Spain, Morocco and Iran in the first round.
Meanwhile, superstar Cristiano Ronaldo won the 2017 Quina de Oro Award for Best Portuguese Footballer of the year, for the second consecutive year.
Ronaldo on Monday received the award at the Carlos Lopes Pavilion in a ceremony organised by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF), the National Association of Portuguese Coaches (ANTP) and the Union of Professional Football Players (SJPF), reports Efe. UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin presented the award to Real Madrid's forward, who prevailed in the final vote over Manchester City's Bernardo Silva and Sporting CP's Rui Patricio.
"It was an unforgettable year on a personal and individual level," Ronaldo said, recalling Portugal's qualification for the World Cup in Russia and the"historic year" for Real Madrid, with five trophies.
Ronaldo won the award for the second consecutive year, but he also has in his portfolio the Quina de Oro Award for the Best Portuguese Player of All Time which the Federation awarded him in 2015.
Portugal train for Egypt friendly
Portugal's football squad undertook a training session on Tuesday at the Soccer City ground in Lisbon ahead of friendly games against Egypt and the Netherlands.
Star striker and captain Cristiano Ronaldo, who has scored 79 goals for his national team and 307 for his club Real Madrid, figured on the roster compiled by head coach Fernando Santos, reports Efe. The Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) announced that Napoli's 26-year-old left-back M'e1rio Rui would make his first-team debut, replacing Fabio Coentrao, currently on loan to Sporting CP, who was sidelined with an injury.
Portugal are set to take on Egypt at home on March 23, followed by an away trip to the Netherlands three days later. The team will share their 2018 World Cup group with neighbour Spain, Morocco and Iran. Portugal will look to make amends for their woeful 2014 World Cup campaign in Brazil, where it crashed out in the group stage.
