Cristiano Ronaldo Has Some Thoughts On Soccer, Friendship, And Trick Penalty Kicks

Barcelona did something really fun and cool last weekend. Well, they did many fun and cool things, but the most memorable and somewhat controversial thing was Lionel Messi’s penalty fake-out. So when Cristiano Ronaldo took the podium today ahead of Real Madrid’s Champions League match tomorrow, it was only natural that he was asked about that incident and the general friendship of Messi, Luis Suárez, and Neymar. If nothing else, Ronaldo’s answers make you think.

As you can see in the video above, Ronaldo has a take on Messi’s penalty, but isn’t too keen on divulging it publicly. Here’s what he had to say about it, as translated by AS English:

“I’ll be precise with this. I know why Leo did this, but I won’t elaborate any more. You can now think what you want”.

Hmmm. There’s definitely some shade here, but it’s not exactly clear in what direction. Is he implying Messi was afraid to miss if he took it himself? That the team is trying to gift Suárez some gimmes so that he stays ahead of Ronaldo in the the Pichichi race? That the team really did want to embarrass Celta Vigo? What do you know, Ronaldo?

Those weren’t CR7's only thoughts on Barcelona’s star forwards, either. He was later asked about the obvious friendship the three blaugrana forwards have struck up, so evident in their smiles and high fives and hugs after every goal. Here’s how he responded (in Spanish):

And AS’s translation:

“You believe all that you read? I’ll be straight with you. At Manchester United we won the Champions League and I didn’t talk to the likes of Scoles, Giggs or Ferdinand, apart from ‘Good Morning’. Despite that, we had an excellent team. I don’t have to go out for dinner with Benzema or invite him over. What counts is what happens on the pitch. I don’t need hugs and kisses”.

He has a point, of course. We have more than enough examples of teams winning loads without being best buds outside the parameters of the game. However, this still smacks of a little saltiness—his doubting of their relationship, the “I don’t need hugs and kisses” line—and anyway, while friendship isn’t necessary for a job, it sure as hell makes things a lot more fun. All of which is to say: Ronaldo, you feeling a little salty, bud?

[ AS English]