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Ronaldo will make Real Madrid top club: Spanish press
Spain's press toasted Real Madrid's signing of Brazilian star striker Ronaldo from Inter Milan, predicting Sunday that his arrival could turn the Spanish powerh
- Indo-Asian News Service
- Updated: February 25, 2007 08:28 AM IST
Read Time:2 min
Madrid:
Spain's press toasted Real Madrid's signing of Brazilian star striker Ronaldo from Inter Milan, predicting Sunday that his arrival could turn the Spanish powerhouse into one of the world's greatest ever soccer clubs. Ronaldo, who has joined Madrid on a four-year contract in a reported $ 44.5 million deal, will link up with four internationally renowned players - Zinedine Zidane, Raul Gonzalez, Roberto Carlos and Luis Figo. Relishing the prospect of seeing the 25-year-old wearing a Madrid shirt - the club says he will wear number 11 - the leading daily Marca asked, "Is this the greatest team of all time?" Another sports daily, As, proclaimed that the side could become better than the famed Madrid team that won five successive European Cups from 1956-1960, and featured a mock-up photo of the quintet of stars together in Madrid uniforms. This will be Ronaldo's second spell in Spain. He had a highly successful year at Barcelona in the 1996-97 season, when he was voted European and World soccer player of the year. The striker's Brazilian teammate Roberto Carlos also welcomed the transfer. "Ronaldo had to leave Milan," the left back said. "He wanted to enjoy soccer again and here he is sure to do so." Only the Barcelona-based press, traditionally critical of Madrid, appeared to take exception to the swoop for the player who was the World Cup's leading scorer this summer with eight goals. The daily Mundo Deportivo quoted Real Madrid's sports director Jorge Valdano Valdano as saying a month ago that "Ronaldo could be a solution on the field but a problem in the dressing room." Bitter exit Ronaldo's soap-opera exit to Real Madrid was greeted bitterly on Sunday by Italians. Inter fans never hid their growing distaste of Ronaldo after he made it clear he wanted to leave for Spain. The Italian press reacted bitterly to his final exit. Most Inter fans contend that he owes something to the club, which paid and supported him while he spent most of the last three years recovering from knee injuries. "He arrived like a king, and he leaves like a thief," the Corriere dello Sport daily said. "The great love between Inter fans and Ronaldo is nothing but a distant memory." The news daily Corriere della Sera referred to the sentiments of Inter fans in its headline: "Ronaldo leaves Inter escorted by police." Ronaldo acknowledged in an interview with the Milan daily that he wasn't leaving under the best circumstances. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I have to leave, especially in this way," he was quoted by Corriere della Sera as saying. "Yes, from Inter I've received a lot. But there's a motive that has brought me to this decision, and everyone knows it." Most sports dailies were consumed with the convulsing day of deals and counter-deals that ran right up to the transfer deadline.(AP)Topics mentioned in this article
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