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Former Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic once claimed that Wayne Rooney deserves credit for Cristiano Ronaldo's success at the club back in the day. According to the Swedish icon, the Englishman did all the work while the Portuguese got the plaudits because he was scoring lots of goals.
Cristiano Ronaldo's first stint at Manchester United proved to be a massive success. The Portuguese claimed one Champions League crown, three Premier League titles, two Carling Cups, one FA Cup, one Club World Cup and one Community Shield between 2003 and 2009.
In addition, he won several individual honors, including the first of his five Ballon d'Or awards, the European Golden Shoe, and the PFA Player of the Year, among others. However, despite the recognition enjoyed by the Portuguese, Zlatan Ibrahimovic insists that Wayne Rooney did all the work.
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“Wayne Rooney for me, when he played with Cristiano Ronaldo, all the work was done by Wayne Rooney," the former Red Devils forward said in quotes conveyed by GiveMeSport.
“But he didn’t get the credit that Ronaldo got, because Ronaldo was scoring all the amazing goals, a lot of goals."
Ibrahimovic went on to sing more praises of Wayne Rooney, hailing him as the perfect partner for his contribution to team play.
“He is the perfect partner, because he is a team player, runs a lot, he fights a lot, he sacrifices a lot, he scores goals, he makes beautiful assists, he doesn’t think about himself only," the Swede continued.
“He thinks about the team. He wants to win, he does everything to win. So whoever played with Rooney he has to be very happy and lucky, because, for sure, he made them much better than what they were," he added.
Wayne Rooney's time at Manchester United saw him bag 253 goals and 141 assists in 559 games across all competitions between 2004 and 2017. He helped the Red Devils claim one Champions League crown, five Premier League titles, one Europa League, one FA Cup, four Carling Cups, and four Community Shields, solidifying his position as a club legend.
How Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United have fared this season
Despite turning 40 recently, Cristiano Ronaldo is still holding on to his reputation as one of the most potent goal scorers in world football at the moment. The Portuguese international continues to make the difference for Al Nassr in front of the goal this season.
So far, he's recorded 33 goals and four assists to his name in 39 appearances for the Saudi Arabian giants across all competitions. Sadly, he's very likely to end the campaign without silverware yet again as his side has been eliminated from every cup competition and currently sit 11 points below the summit of the league with just seven games to go.
Manchester United, meanwhile, have had a similar fate to Cristiano Ronaldo's in terms of trophies as they've missed out on all domestic honors and currently rank 16th in the Premier League after 36 games. They, however, have a last chance to make up for their poor campaign by winning the Europa League. They will face Tottenham Hotspur in the decider on May 21.
