Cristiano Ronaldo has come under fire from a former Real Madrid star who claims he ‘doesn’t know how to play football’.
The 39-year-old continued his record-breaking accolades having recently become the first player in history to score 900 goals.
Ronaldo made history earlier this month with his 900th goal in footballGetty
It follows his incredible achievements in the game which has seen him scoop five Ballon d’Or awards and five Champions League triumphs during his time with Manchester United and Real Madrid.
He also saw success at international level helping Portugal win Euro 2016, beating host nation France in the final.
But it appears that the forward’s achievements in the game have not impressed one fellow Real Madrid alumni.
Antonio Cassano spent two years at the Santiago Bernabeu between 2006 and 2008, scoring just four times for Los Blancos compared to Ronaldo’s whopping 450 goals for the club.
The Italian has since retired from football and now regularly appears as a pundit.
His outlandish views have caused much controversy since taking up his new role and now Cassano has boldly put Ronaldo in his firing line… and not for the first time.
“Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t know how to play football,” he told the El Futbol podcast. “He could score 3,000 goals, I don’t give a f***.”
“[Gonzalo] Higuain, [Sergio] Aguero, [Karim] Benzema, [Robert] Lewandowski, [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic and [Luis] Suarez knew how to link-up with the team.
“They knew how to do a lot of things, unlike Ronaldo whose only objective has always been to score.”
viva el futbolCassano pulled no punches in his criticism of the Al-Nassr star[/caption]
Ronaldo netted a staggering 450 goals in 438 games for Real MadridGetty
Cassano spent two seasons at Real Madrid scoring just four timesAFP – Getty
It is the second time Cassano has had a pop at Ronaldo after calling on the Portuguese to retire in 2022 during his ill-fated second spell at Old Trafford.
He said: “A guy like Cristiano has to think about himself and if you can’t do it anymore then you have to call it a day.
“It’s a rule in all sports. Retire, that’s enough!
“He has won everything, he has been a phenomenon, he has earned a lot of money and now he is not a starter at Manchester United.”
Cassano called time on his career in 2018 after failing to find a new club following his departure from Verona, 12-months earlier.
He picked up a La Liga title winners medal in 2007 and was a Serie title winner with AC Milan in 2010.
Cassano scored ten goals in 39 caps for Italy and enjoyed spells at hometown club Bari, Roma, Sampdoria and Parma