"He is a person of great dimension" - Al-Nassr manager Luis Castro heaps praises on 'best player in the world' Cristiano Ronaldo

Al-Nassr manager Luis Castro recently gave an interview discussing his experience of managing Cristiano Ronaldo.

In his conversation with Portuguese outlet O Jogo, Castro reflected on many topics, including Ronaldo's winning mentality, personality, and more. He said (quotes via AS USA):

“In addition to being the best player in the world, he is a person of great dimension , who looks a lot at others and is very attentive to the particularities of the group he is in.”

Castro added:

“[He is] eager to conquer things again. There is a lot of ambition in him, that is normal in his day to day life . The human being exists in various aspects of life and Cristiano has always had the greatest ambition in all of them.”

Luis Castro became Cristiano Ronaldo's manager when he took charge of Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr at the start of the 2023-24 season. The Portugal captain has been flourishing under his compatriot. He has scored 24 goals and has provided 11 assists in 25 official matches for his club side this term.

The 38-year-old had a remarkable overall in 2023, scoring 54 goals for club and country, the most by any player around the world.

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Luis Castro reflects on Cristiano Ronaldo's difficult period during the 2022 FIFA World Cup

While Cristiano Ronaldo has had a career full of highs, the 2022 FIFA World Cup was arguably the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's most difficult patch. He failed to perform to the best of his abilities and was even benched for Portugal's knockout games against Switzerland and Morocco.

Ronaldo's relationship with then-Portugal boss Fernando Santos also came under scrutiny. The 2016 European champions were eliminated in the quarter-finals of the World Cup by Morocco. Ronaldo was left the stage teary-eyed, having scored only once in the competition.

Castro has shown compassion toward the legendary forward, telling O Jogo (via AS USA):

"There is one thing that people should realize: we are all human beings, we are not machines and neither are idols. At certain moments people look at the protagonists and lose respect for the human being.”

Cristiano Ronaldo, however, has been firing on all cylinders this season. Apart from scoring some spectacular goals, he has also embraced the role of a master creator, regularly laying out assists for his teammates.

He scored 10 goals in nine games for Portugal in the UEFA Euro 2024 Qualifiers, helping them win every game.