Brazilian legend Ronaldinho is better than footballing greats Pele, Maradona and Zinedine Zidane, according to Kevin-Prince Boateng. While the Ghanaian’s claim nay be surprising, Boateng is in a position to make the judgement, having played alongside Ronaldinho at AC Milan, though not at the Brazilian’s peak years in Barcelona.
Speaking to Fox Sports, Boateng lavished praise on his former AC Milan teammate, saying “At Milan he was no longer the Ronaldinho from his heyday, but when he wanted to, he showed what he could do with the ball and it was so impressive. In those moments you realised he was the best player in the world, beyond Zidane, Pele, or Maradona.”
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However, Boateng also briefly touched on the partying lifestyle that many claim prevented Ronaldinho from reaching the heights of his true potential, saying “When he wasn't out the night before and had rested well, he came to training and told the players who he'd nutmeg that day, and he always did it.”
“He could hit the crossbar however many times he wanted and juggled the ball like you couldn't imagine, it was impossible to find a player with such talent in his body.”
Ronaldinho only has a single regret from his career
While Ronaldinho ended his career having won every major personal and team honour possible, ranging from the Ballon d’Or to lifting La Liga, the UEFA Champions League with Barcelona to winning the 2002 FIFA World Cup with Brazil, he is considered to have wasted his immense talent, with those who witnessed him in his Barcelona heyday considering him to be better that Lionel Messi at his peak.
However, the Brazilian seems satisfied with what he has achieved, with one small regret, saying “I've achieved everything I wanted to and I'm grateful for that. Of course, I would have loved to have played more with Messi, he's a great player and I'm very glad to have helped him at the beginning of his career with the assistance of his first goal.”
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“Having seen him go on to become such a great player, it would have been great to have played more with Messi, but at that time my period at Barca was over and it was time for me to move to achieve new things and set new objectives, so the time had come for me to leave.”
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