"Absolute genius, always smiling" - Tennis icon Andy Murray reveals Barcelona legend was his 'favourite athlete' growing up

Former ATP World No. 1 tennis player Andy Murray has lauded Barcelona icon Ronaldinho as an 'absolute genius'.

The now-retired Brazilian spent five seasons at Barca during the 2000s, bagging an impressive 94 goals and 70 assists in 207 games across competitions. One of his best seasons at the club was in 2005-06. Ronaldinho scored 25 goals and bagged 23 assists in 43 games across competitions as Barca won the La Liga and UEFA Champions League titles.

A magician with the ball at his feet, Ronaldinho was the cynosure of all eyes during his eventful stay at the Camp Nou. There was seldom a dull moment when the Brazilian took full flight, flaunting his impressive footwork, bamboozling defenders and picking out teammates with defence-splitting passes or through-balls.

Murray, who went to Barcelona to train when he was 15, witnessed the brilliance of Ronaldinho from close quarters. He commented on a UEFA Champions League tweet containing a highlight reel of the Brazilian:

"My favourite athlete growing up when I moved to Barcelona to train at 15 I got the chance to watch him live a bunch of times. Absolute genius. Always smiling. I’d arrive early at the stadium just to watch him warm up, as he’d be doing ridiculous skills/tricks like in the video."

Ronaldinho retired from the sport in 2015 after a spell with Fluminense in his native Brazil. Meanwhile, the 36-year-old Murray is preparing for the 2024 season, which gets underway in a few weeks.

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Barcelona's 2023-24 season at a glance

Barca manager Xavi Hernandez

Barcelona have had an inconsistent season under Xavi Hernandez. While they made a bright start to the campaign, the La Liga holders have run out of steam recently.

Following a 4-2 home loss to surprise La Liga leaders Girona, Barca fell to a surrpise 3-2 loss at Royal Antwerp in their final UEFA Champions League group game in midweek.

Nevertheless, they're through to the knockouts as group winners but are sevent points behind Girona (41) in the La Liga standings after 16 games. They next travel to Valencia on Saturday (December 16) in the league, hoping to make up some ground on the early pacesetters.