“I was in love with him at Manchester United” - Ella Toone opens up on admiration for Cristiano Ronaldo

Manchester United women's player Ella Toone has opened up about her admiration for Cristiano Ronaldo during the latter's first stint at Old Trafford.

The England international started off her career with the Red Devils' youth setup and returned to the club following spells with Blackburn and Manchester City. Speaking about her adoration for the Portuguese icon, whose first spell with the Manchester side was between 2003 and 2009, she told Sky Sports (via GOAL):

"I always say it. He's probably had such an impact on my career, the way that I wanted to be and that was Cristiano Ronaldo. I wore his boots. I wore the No. 7 shirt. I was in love with him at Manchester United and the skills that he did and the confidence he played with."

The 24-year-old also revealed that she's yet to cross paths with the 39-year-old striker but has a video message from the former Real Madrid man saved on her phone. She said:

"I didn't actually get to meet him. I did see him one time, the girls were all looking through the window going: 'That's Ronaldo!' He did send me a video once and I've got that saved in the favorites."

Ronaldo also returned to Old Trafford in the summer of 2021 but ended up leaving the club after an underwhelming second stint just about a year and a half later. Overall, he's made 346 appearances across competitions for Manchester United, bagging 145 goals and 64 assists.

He's won the Premier League thrice with the Red Devils and has lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy once.

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Cristiano Ronaldo thanks Manchester United after breaking record

Cristiano Ronaldo finished as the Saudi Pro League's top goalscorer this season, netting 35 times in 31 matches. The Portuguese attacker became the first player to finish as top scorer in four different leagues around the globe.

The first of these occasions saw the five-time Ballon d'Or winner bag the most Premier League goals in the 2007/08 campaign (31). Thanking the Red Devils along with his other employers, he wrote on Instagram:

"Proud to make history as the first top scorer in four countries. A huge thank you to all the clubs, teammates and staff who helped me along the way."

Ronaldo also managed to achieve the feat with Real Madrid in La Liga and with Juventus in Serie A. He is currently under contract at Al-Nassr till the summer of 2025.