"Beyond anything I've seen" - Rooney makes claim about Cristiano Ronaldo's mentality when asked if he had to sacrifice his game for ex-teammate

Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney has spoken about the mentality shown by former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo during their time together. The pair of forwards formed a deadly partnership for the Red Devils in the late 2000s, winning multiple honours at the club.

Rooney was a guest on Rio Ferdinand's Rio Meets podcast, where he opened up on various things that happened during his career. He answered questions on whether he toned down his game for Ronaldo, and he replied in the affirmative. He pointed out that he did not consider it so while they played because he was more of a team player, while Ronaldo had a selfish streak.

"Not once did I think I needed to sacrifice. Yeah, it did look like that and felt like that at times but I wanted to win, I wanted to win the PL, the UCL. Cristiano Ronaldo has got something in his brain which I don't think anyone has got. He's got this mindset and mentality which is way beyond anything I've seen in football. My mindset and mentality is not to that level but its at a level where I want to win. I never cared about Ballon d'Or's or any individual trophies. For me, that's nothing, couldn't care less. I wanted to win with you(Rio); with teammates. Of course Cristiano wanted to win all that with the team but he had that selfish mentality where he wanted everything, I didn't have that", he said.

Wayne Rooney moved to Manchester United in 2004 after a brilliant breakout season at Everton, joining Cristiano Ronaldo, who had joined a year earlier, at the club. The Englishman and his fellow forward enjoyed a successful spell at Old Trafford, winning the Premier League and UEFA Champions League.

Rooney ended up staying with the Red Devils until 2017, when he left to join Everton after scoring 253 goals for the club. Cristiano Ronaldo did not stay as long, moving for a then-world record transfer fee to Real Madrid in 2009.

Wayne Rooney makes Cristiano Ronaldo revelation

Manchester United and England legend Wayne Rooney has pointed out that he does not have a problem with Cristiano Ronaldo. Both players were on the books of the Red Devils for five years, with Sir Alex Ferguson leading them to great success.

Rooney revealed in an interview with Rio Ferdinand that he considers Ronaldo to be a genius at football. He pointed out that because he has openly picked Lionel Messi over the Portuguese in the past, that does not mean that he hates the Al-Nassr man. He revealed that he had a good relationship with Ronaldo during their time with the Red Devils.

"People think I hate him [Ronaldo]. I love him. I think he's an absolute genius and what he's doing is incredible. I love Cristiano and playing with him. I don't think people realise actually how close me and him were. I think just because I've said that I think Messi is better than Ronaldo, people think I don't like Cristiano. "I absolutely love Messi, love watching him play and that was the only reason because I think Messi had a little bit more in terms of how he played and taking players on and whatever. Ronaldo's a killer and people think because I've said Messi is better than Ronaldo, I don't like him or speak down on him", he said via ESPN.

Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo had a public clash in 2006 at the World Cup, when the Portuguese star was accused of influencing a red card for his United teammate in a Portugal v England match. Their time with the Red Devils mostly went by without drama, with the pair winning three league titles at Old Trafford.

Edited by Sulayman Salahudeen