"Dedication is what makes him who he is" - Scolari says Cristiano Ronaldo 'might not be' the most talented player he has coached

Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has established himself among the greatest players in the history of the game, thanks to his incredible records and achievements over the years.

Luiz Felipe Scolari, who worked with the attacker during his time as Portugal manager from 2003 to 2008, believes dedication, not talent, is what makes Ronaldo stand out from the rest. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has scored over 800 goals for club and country, and is still going strong at the age of 37.

"He is the most dedicated of them all," the tactician told Sportsmail when asked if Cristiano Ronaldo is the most talented player he has ever coached.

Scolari added:

"The most talented, he might not be. Talent is not one of the first virtues when we think of Ronaldo, but dedication is what makes him who he is. It is the first virtue when I think of him".

Felipe Scolari also spent some time discussing how good Cristiano Ronaldo is. The tactician hailed the Portuguese as a goal machine, reflecting on his days at Sporting and how he evolved under Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United to become a superstar. The Brazilian said about the evolution of Cristiano Ronaldo:

"Oh, man, he is a goal machine. He is a fantastic guy. I saw him at Sporting in 2003 with great desire and power. He even has more desire today than he had at the beginning of his career. He is a great person. Sometimes we don’t see how good a person he is outside of the field. He is very dedicated. He prepared himself to be an athlete."

"We didn’t participate actively in building him to be like this, but Ferguson and his youth coaches were responsible for evolving Cristiano into who he is. It makes me very happy to see him do it at the highest level until this day," Scolari added.

Incidentally, Scolari was the person who first broke the news of the death of Cristiano Ronaldo's father to the player. That created a unique bond between the two, one that transcended the coach-player relationship. Scolari said:

"It was very hard. It was the moment that created a bond between us, a bond that surpasses the coach-athlete relationship. When the news got to us, before a game against Russia, nobody knew how to tell him and nobody wanted to. So I told them I would do it as I knew how it was to lose a parent. I had lost mine a few years before."

"It was very sad, but it’s the kind of moment that connects us as friends. The next day, Cristiano played a marvellous game and returned to Portugal. He asked to play. He said: ‘I can’t do anything for my father today, so I’ll play tomorrow and then I’ll go.’"

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How has Cristiano Ronaldo fared this season?

Cristiano Ronaldo has shown no signs of slowing down just yet.

Cristiano Ronaldo took another big step in his career by leaving Juventus to return to Manchester United last summer. He has wasted no time in making his impact felt at Old Trafford, putting up decisive performances for the Red Devils in front of goal.

So far this season, the Portuguese has recorded 14 goals and three assists in 24 appearances across competitions. That includes eight goals in the English top flight and six in the Champions League. However, he hasn't scored in his last four games across competitions in 2022. That includes a missed penalty in the FA Cup defeat to Middlesbrough, although he did score in the shootout.

If he doesn't score in his next game, it will equal his worst scoreless run in over a decade. Manchester United travel to Burnley in the Premier League on Tuesday.