The former striker, who had to contend with Puyol’s defensive skills on a fair few occasions, claimed to have had “no idea” about the decision. “It took me by surprise. His status at Barcelona is like Hierro’s at Real Madrid; he’s a club icon”. Laughing, Ronaldo called Puyol “a pain” to try to get past on the pitch, while adding that he was “very loyal and polite. He is a role model”.
The ‘Seleção’ legend also talked about Diego Costa, stating: “I think things are going to go well for him. I don’t know what his reasons were for picking Spain, but I’m sure he gave it a lot of thought and did what was best for him. I think he would be in the Brazil team, but I wish him luck”.
‘Ronnie’ is expecting his country to put on a fantastic World Cup: “We are making a big effort. It’s going to be spectacular, with the best teams and the best players in the heartland of football”. Lastly, the ex-Real Madrid man had encouraging words for his old club and Gareth Bale: “I spoke to Zidane just recently and told him that the team is looking really strong and I think it’s going to be a good year for them. I’ve been pretty impressed with Bale too”.
