Saturday 12 November 2016 17:21, UK
Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has revealed that the great Brazil striker Ronaldo was his boyhood idol.
Ronaldo won the World Cup twice - in 1994 and 2002 - scoring 62 goals in 98 internationals for Brazil.
He began his career with Cruzeiro in his homeland before moving to Europe where he played for PSV Eindhoven, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and AC Milan before returning home to Corinthians.
Ibrahimovic, 35, admits Ronaldo, a three-time FIFA player of the year and two-time Ballon D'Or winner - was the player he looked up during his teenage years in Sweden.
"I think Ronaldo was phenomenal," he told the club's official match programme, United Review.
"He was the player that whatever he did it became…'wow'! He could do a difficult thing and it became magic.
"He would take the ball and it was like him saying 'I'll take care of it now'. You didn't have that kind of football player before and you don't have it today. He doesn't exist.
"As a young player I watched him and said to myself 'I want to be exactly like that'… the player who makes the difference, the shining light, simple as that."
