José Mourinho has coached Cristiano Ronaldo and hailed Lionel Messi as “the god of football”. But when it came to naming the best player he had ever seen live, he ignored both – and chose a completely different legend.
Mourinho has made no secret of his admiration for both Ronaldo and Messi over the years. The renowned Portuguese tactician worked with compatriot Ronaldo at Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013 – although they didn’t always agree at the Bernabéu. Luka Modrić has actually revealed that Mourinho on one occasion made Ronaldo cry in the dressing room.
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As for Messi, Mourinho admitted that the Argentine is the one player he would like to have as manager. He also described the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner as “the god of football”. Praise doesn’t come higher.
“The best I’ve ever seen”
Despite that, there is one legend who Mourinho said is the “best footballer” he has ever seen on a pitch. And had it not been for injuries, this player would almost certainly be part of the debate about the greatest of all time.
That player is, of course, Ronaldo Nazário – the Brazilian, and the original Ronaldo. In 2023, Mourinho told The Sun, about R9:
“The best footballer I’ve ever seen on a pitch. I think injuries killed a career that could have been even more incredible. But the talent this guy had as a 19-year-old was something incredible.
Mourinho agreed that the R9 lacked the same longevity as Ronaldo and Messi, but suggested that his natural abilities were off the scale:
“Not with a career like Cristiano or Messi, 15 years at the top – every day. But a natural talent, unbelievable.
The phenomenon
It is noteworthy that Ronaldo Nazário managed to come back from two career-threatening knee injuries and was still lethal in and around the penalty area in the final years of his career. Mourinho witnessed Ronaldo up close during the Brazilian’s impressive 1996/97 season at Barcelona, where he scored 47 goals in 49 games.
Blessed with extraordinary speed, tight control, cunning and agility, Ronaldo was like nothing football had seen before when he broke through in the 1990s. Although he ended his career with the status of one of the greatest of all time, there will always be a “what if?” over the Brazilian.
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