Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan calls Cristiano Ronaldo a freak

We all know what a great cricketer and captain Michael Vaughan was. However, people know very little about his immense passion for the sport of Football. In an interview with FIFA.com, the former cricketer reveals how he followed football as a child, and his stand out memories.

When asked whether he played football in his younger days , he said, “I played loads. I was playing for local teams and I was with Wednesday for a bit too. I went on a week trial when I was about 13 but I didn’t last until the end of it, so I realised then that it was maybe time to take cricket a bit more seriously. I still love football though”

He goes on to reveal who he tips to win the World Cup next year.

He said, “I’d say one of the South American sides – you have to fancy Brazil or Argentina near their own back yard. One of the African teams could do well, as I definitely think the heat is going to play a part. You can’t overlook Spain when playing such an attractive brand of football, but I think Brazil on home soil will be strong favourites”

When asked about England’s chances, he seemed bearish, however, predicted a brighter future.

He said, “You have to start somewhere. They’ve started selecting a few young players, they’ve identified a brand of football, I think they’re looking at next year as a learning curve as I don’t feel anyone is expecting them to win it. Then you hope in the next tournament at the EURO in 2016 something better will happen. [FA Chairman] Greg Dyke’s golden vision is to win a major tournament by 2022, which I think is right to do. English cricket set the target to be the number one team in the world and everyone laughed, but they ended up achieving that for a short period”

In the end, when asked about who he wants the Ballon d’Or to go to, he tips Cristiano Ronaldo, calling him an absolute freak.

He said, “Cristiano Ronaldo has got to get it, hasn’t he? He’s a freak, he scores a hat-trick every week! And he does it with so much hair gel in! Him and [Lionel] Messi are just geniuses. They’re brilliant footballers, but I just think Ronaldo is magnificent. Either foot, left or right wing, down the middle, scores with his head, from outside the box, takes penalties. He and Messi and wonderful, but I’ll go for Ronaldo this year”