Those of you old enough to remember anything of Romário’s playing career will know that the man never doubted his own ability.
Probably best known on these shores for his time at PSV Eindhoven and Barcelona, and the role he played in Brazil’s 1994 World Cup triumph, it’s fair to say that Romário knew damn well that he was one of the finest players of his generation.
He has even been quoted as saying that he regards himself second only to Pele in a list of all-time greats.
https://youtu.be/tg0phFPws_Q
Six years after Romário had joined PSV, another talented Brazilian by the name of Ronaldo moved to the Dutch club. Just 18 at the time of his move to Europe, he’d been an unused member of the 1994 World Cup winning squad, of which Romário had been the main attraction.
Like Romário, he would go on to showcase his ability to stick the ball in the back of the net with PSV before securing a move to the Camp Nou a couple of years later.
Like Romário before him, Ronaldo became his country’s talisman – his goals helping them reach the 1998 World Cup final, which they lost to France, and the 2002 final, where they defeated Germany.
Because of the obvious similarities in their careers, comparisons have always been made between the pair. Recently, they were interviewed by Globo (as highlighted by the tweet below, from Jack Lang) and asked which of them was the better player.
Ronaldo’s response was noncommittal, indicating that he couldn’t choose between them.
Romário’s reply was… well, exactly what you’d expect of the man…
Ronaldo and Romário asked which of them was the better player by Globo.
Ronaldo: "I can't say."
Romário: "I was much better than him."
— Jack Lang (@jacklang) March 7, 2017
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