CRISTIANO RONALDO HAS NO HONESTY

And that will always be his greatest crime

13/06/2009

"THE DEAL is historic - £80m is quite a sum of money."

And there you have it. Cristiano Ronaldo, finest player of his generation, judges history by noughts in a bank account.

When Ronaldo picked up his first Footballer of the Year Award, I sat in the company of his agent Jorge Mendes - a man who has probably made more millions from the game than Sir Alex Ferguson just by whispering into his mobile phone.

Conversation wasn't great. Admittedly, his English was a damn sight better than my Portuguese but that was irrelevant.

Because he spent most of the time texting his preening cash cow sat just yards away, uninterested in legends of the game who flanked him on the top table.

Legends such as Sir Alex. As Ferguson was no doubt chatting passionately about the game, Ronaldo was grinning at his Nokia.Either amused at a Mendes missive or captivated by a reflection. While images of greats looked down. Past winners from Stanley Matthews to Kenny Dalglish, from Tom Finney to Frank Lampard.

CRISTIANO RONALDO - poppycock

Men who command total respect. Men who considered themselves lucky to have football ... not that football was lucky to have them. Men worthy of statues.

If they commission a likeness of Ronaldo outside Old Trafford, it will be horizontal. Winking, perhaps. A golden Nike boot about to stamp the ground.

With the ball at his feet, Ronaldo is a miracle-worker. Now he has pulled off the biggest of them all.

For three years, he has scaled peaks of unimaginable height. But he will be remembered as a blot on our footballing landscape. Admiration is something that evaporates. Affection lasts.

For his talent, he had the former. For his behaviour, he had none of the latter. For every example of his artistry, there was an example of his con-artistry. And the diving, the feigning, the petulance, the rampant egoism are not his worst crimes.

He misled the fans and, it seems, misled the greatest club manager of all time. In these pages, on Sky Sports, on radio, he professed his commitment to United and talked of the fatherly influence of Ferguson.

HONEST TOIL - Kevin Keegan holds off Berti Vogts in his final appearance for Liverpool

It turned out to be poppycock.

In 1977, as Liverpool chased what was then an unprecedented treble, their talisman Kevin Keegan announced he was going to leave Anfield at the end of the season to fulfil his ambition of playing abroad.

Initial reaction was one of understandable disappointment, anger even - especially when he didn't shine in the FA Cup Final defeat at the hands of Manchester United.

But in his last game for Liverpool - a European Cup Final in Rome, just like Ronaldo's - Keegan destroyed Berti Vogts and led his team to a memorable triumph.

Keegan did not score in that 3-1 victory over Borussia Mönchengladbach but his selflessness lit up the same Olympic Stadium that, 32 years later, stunk of Ronaldo's selfishness.

At the time, Liverpool fans may not have liked it when Keegan made his intentions plain. But he has their enduring respect. Their enduring affection.

Two things that Ronaldo will not have at Old Trafford because, almost to a man, United supporters believe he deceived them, duped them, feigned loyalty to the club.

Unlike in the case of Keegan three decades ago, they believe he wasn't honest with them. And that is the key word.

Those names he disrespected when texting the bloke charged with pimping his services to football had their foibles, their faults. But they are all perceived as honest.

On and off the pitch, Cristiano Ronaldo, finest player of his generation, will always - rightly or wrongly - be a by-word for dishonesty. And that - not quite a sum of money such as £80million - is historic.

Now get the News of World print edition for more from Andy Dunn

Your comments

This article has 19 comments

Are you serious? You wanted Ronaldo to "honestly" say that he wanted to go to Real Madrid during the season? Do you have any idea the ramifications about his saying that while he still had matches to go?

Do you think that Ronaldo wanted to stay this year? Fergie talked him into staying and they new he was leaving this year. SAF is most likely the one who told him to keep it under raps through the end of the season. Blame him and not Ronaldo for the dishonesty.

By Ha.. Posted June 20 2009 at 11:01 PM.

say what you will about ronaldo but he was a key reason for you guys winning all those titles, now you have lost one of your best players and will be tough to replace

By Chelsea09.. Posted June 18 2009 at 10:11 PM.

good article but one point andy bob paisley is the greatest british manager of all time not alex ferguson.as another comment says football is a money game now and when your commanding millions in a year for kicking a ball your bound to lose any sense of perspective

By robbie p.. Posted June 14 2009 at 10:18 PM.

unfortunately as is the case in most high profile sports the days honesty and loyalty seem to be a thing of the past! ok in the seventies the likes of keegan saw it as part of their duties to be upfront and honest, however in this day and age because of the inflated sums of money on offer in the game and the influence the parasites! oops i mean agents have on decisions made by players greed is now the main ingrediant of the sport! so who would,nt of jumped ship for the astronomical ammout of money on offer in this instance! good business all round i think! but as for loyalty and honesty by the winker lets not forget the loyalty and dishonesty he showed his domestic team mate wayne rooney in the past integrity is a word that does not exist in this mans vocabulary!

By hitman.. Posted June 14 2009 at 5:24 PM.

People... Ronaldo is Portuguese not British. Madrid... Spain, is a better place to leave.

By david.. Posted June 14 2009 at 3:48 PM.

Every child has a dream and hes was Real, nothing can change that. Ive been with a company for 6 years, another big name company that i dreamed of working fo when i was younger head hunts me and offers me a huge paycheck.....? I'd take and so would bloody 99% of the population, its time to let go people and just be thankful of what hes brought to united and to the prem.

By Pedro.. Posted June 14 2009 at 2:44 PM.

Everyone knows exactly what you get with him. All those of us who support Man Utd will regret the player leaving but not the ego and now Madrid have to take that on board. Galactic pay and galactic ego to go with it. Greatest player? No. The likes of Pele, Maradona and Messi let others make those judgments but this twit tries to convince everyone himself. on the field he is a genius but in his own mind he's even better than that. I give it one season before he winds people up the wrong way in Spain with his preening demands. Utd have lost a great player but also a bad influence within their squad. I can't say I'm looking forward to next season but it's not the end of the world.

By Mick Trezise.. Posted June 14 2009 at 1:42 PM.

why are you all being so nasty he only did wht you would do

By Jordan.. Posted June 14 2009 at 12:47 PM.

I think people need to get over it. Ronaldo is a 20 something year old man who just got paid some serious amount of money to go to a club, who with all do respect to him he has professed of wanting to play for. Yes he said he wants to stay at united, but we've heard that story many times from others before. Also remember 1 thing, Sir Alex & the united board probably knew about it a while ago, it's business, has been for years. I also want to say stop the negative comments about Ronaldo's diving conning refs etc, that is part of the game which some coaches tell their players to do anyway,

By Lacman.. Posted June 14 2009 at 11:47 AM.

By Lacman.. Posted June 14 2009 at 11:57 AM.

im a staunch Man Utd fan and i've been absolutely gutted since i heard the announcement, that article has just made me feel so much better! Best of all you're right, and i'm just thankfull we've still got Wayne Rooney...lets be honest he was, is and will still be the real jewel in United's crown.

By Rich Miles Tuck.. Posted June 14 2009 at 11:59 AM.

Sol Campbell did the same to Spurs - stating for a whole season he wanted to stay and then signing for biggest rivals for huge pay packet and no payment to Spurs but he was an English player so press never gave him hard time for "dishonesty"!

By MBrown.. Posted June 14 2009 at 11:31 AM.

you might have a point this time my last memory of him in a united shirt is letting barca get cross in for second goal like he gave in on united,s cause.But we will miss him because he could do things to win games that others maybe could not.Right bring on next utd charge.

By phil .. Posted June 14 2009 at 9:22 AM.

Any above average forwards would get 30+ goals a season if supported by the entire United team like Ronaldo had been. He is very good, but probably not as good as many people think.

By KC.. Posted June 14 2009 at 9:07 AM.

andy we dont always seem i too eye but on this one you've got it spot on he is a cheat in several senses of the term, week in week out he cheated refs, he cheated his team mates, he cheated his fans, [even though they above cant seem to see it] he certainly is not the best player in the world messi proved that in rome to be the best you do it on the appropriate stages, this he has not done with a regular performance. If he thinks 80 million is historic maybe real madrid should give him some schooling because historic it certainly is not. If you want a total proffesional look at frank lampard all comparisons with steven gerrard are fine they are very much alike bar one thing, frank is the most consistant midfeilder maybe footballer in the history of the premier league. when ronaldo's father died he missed games, when franks mother passed away he not only played but he played in a very high profile game also stepped up to take a penalty, now that is the measure of a man. something ronaldo will never be able to reach because self adornment stands in the way.

By justin howard .. Posted June 14 2009 at 7:38 AM.

I really dont understand all of this anti Ronaldo stuff.
I am a United fan and I have rarely seen or heard him say anything that is arrogant or dishonest.
If, as it seems is that case, this deal was done some time ago, United and Ferguson have been as dishonest. But seriously if they had said anything else he wouldn't have been able to put in a last season like he has. Ronaldo is a phenomenal footballer, athlete and competitor of the type that we find it very difficult to produce in this country - I personally think its that jealousy that drives all of this drivel.
Ronaldo is a professional footballer with a career that is going rather well. I am a United fan, I am grateful for what he has done for United and I am looking forward to seeing him have more success at Madrid because he deserves it.

By Martin Henley.. Posted June 14 2009 at 6:47 AM.

Andy my friend, thanks for the piousness. Now the Reality. Football is a MONEY business. One cannot blame the 'winker', as he was only after filling his pockets like anyone else would do in these times. What happened 30 years ago, is just that. It is history. Good luck to the boy. I would though love to see United in the Champions League Final next season playing, yes you guess, Real Madrid. S

By The Link.. Posted June 14 2009 at 6:04 AM.

Good honest article Andy. I remember the piece you did a few weeks ago when he committed himself to United and you said he would have no dignity if he did not stay, your were right. But I also have to thank Ronaldo has he has played major role in our recent success. I also think despite popular views he did not actually dive much at all, I have seen Gerrard, Lampard and Rooney dive as much but nobody says anything about them doing it. Finally,I just feel the way he has gone about his move is disrespectful to United, SIR Alex and the fans.

By Rory.. Posted June 14 2009 at 2:08 AM.

brilliant arctical,as a united fan for fourty something years i couldnt have put it better myself,good riddance to the selfish so and so

By ste.. Posted June 14 2009 at 12:04 AM.

We have to check every comment before we can allow it to be published. But don't worry, we've got a team on it 24/7 - so check back soon! Please note that we cannot publish all comments received. The editor's decision is final. Please note that your email address will not be displayed next to your comment.