Why Football Legends Still Can't Believe Ronaldinho Was Real

Imagine being a Barcelona player, scoring twice at the Santiago Bernabéu and hearing the entire stadium stand up and applaud you. That almost never happens in football. But it happened for one player. Ronaldinho. Even as you're playing against him, you still enjoy watching him play, you know. Because Ronaldinho wasn't just another superstar. He played football in a way that made the whole world stop and watch. With a smile on his face, tricks nobody expected and a style that looked more like dancing than football. When I was young, he made me dream. For millions of kids around the world, watching Ronaldinho wasn't just entertainment. It was the moment they fell in love with the game. If you take my generation, we're all going to say Ronaldinho was favourite. And many of the players who grew up watching him say exactly the same thing. I tried to recreate him on the streets as well, because I played a lot on the streets back in the day as well. Nowadays, you don't see a lot of players playing with a smile. It was serious, like, I have to win. He was like, I'm just here to enjoy him, make you enjoy him. When I was young, he made me dream. So I was like, one day I want to become, you know. Ronaldinho was something different. For me, something special, magic. With a smile on the face. And sometimes there were nights when Ronaldinho didn't just entertain the crowd. He completely took over the game. On March 9th, 2003, Paris Saint-Germain travelled to Marseille for one of the fiercest rivalries in French football. But that night, Ronaldinho turned the match into his own show. PSG opened the scoring when Jerome Leroy finished a move to make it 1-0. But after that, the match completely belonged to Ronaldinho. For the second goal, he picked up the ball near midfield and accelerated through the Marseille defence. Gliding past defenders, he delicately chipped the goalkeeper Cedric Carrasso to double PSG's lead. Then came the third goal. Ronaldinho drove forward again. Beat the defenders once more. Rounded Carrasso. And rolled the ball into the net from a tight angle. PSG won the match 3-0. But what people remembered wasn't just the scoreline. It was the performance. The Stade of Elendrome is one of the most hostile stadiums for PSG players. Yet that night, even the Marseille crowd fell silent. It was one of those rare moments where the brilliance of a player was stronger than the rivalry itself. Nights like that weren't unusual for Ronaldinho. Players who shared the pitch with him or even trained with him often struggled to explain what they were seeing. Look, he was very relaxed. Very relaxed as a player, as a person. And a magician, really, on the field. He would do things with the ball that I'd never seen. Tricks like this. And I'm talking about in training, but in the games, it was the same. The stuff that he does with ease while he's laughing or just joking around, it would take the average player probably two months every day to practice it. Happy guy. So I told him, I said, you're my idol, I love you. He said, don't worry, we're together now, we're the same level. He's the nicest guy ever. So I was like, this was one of the times where I was shocked. I looked at him, he's like Ronaldinho. He came in with his hair. Bang, he had the band on, you know, big watch. He came in, I was like, Ronaldinho, bro. Forget all of them in the dressing room. It's Ronaldinho, R10, R10. The guy, the talent, in training, in the game, he's a different kind of out of the league. By the early 2000s, players around him already knew Ronaldinho was different. But in the summer of 2002, the stage became much bigger. The World Cup in Japan and South Korea was about to introduce Ronaldinho to the entire world. In the quarterfinal of the 2002 World Cup, Brazil faced England. The score was one-all early in the second half, when Brazil won a free kick nearly 40 metres from goal, close to the touchline. Everyone expected a cross into the box. Even England's goalkeeper David Seaman stepped forward, preparing for the delivery. But Ronaldinho saw something different. Instead of crossing, he struck the ball toward the goal. The shot arched high through the air and dropped straight into the top corner. When the ball was coming over, I was thinking to myself, hit the bar, hit the bar. I just wanted to hear the sound of it. Hit the bar. And I heard it hit the net. Even today, people still argue about that free kick. Was it a cross that went wrong? Or did Ronaldinho mean it? I've seen Ronaldinho play a lot, and I don't think he's capable of mishitting a free kick by that far. Ronaldinho always smiled when asked about it. He simply said he saw Seaman off his line. After the World Cup, Ronaldinho was no longer just a young Brazilian talent. He was now a world champion and one of the most dangerous players in football. And for the defenders who had to face him, stopping Ronaldinho was something else entirely. No, I'm kidding. I think that on the pitch, Marco Carlo was one of the two most difficult players to face. It's definitely the two of them, also because Ronaldinho had a physicality, a speed, and a technique that was impressive. But obviously, it was really, really tough to play against him. It was just fantastic. It's one of those games, when probably at the final whistle, you just want to say thank you. He got to the point where he said to Yayako, if you come too close to me, be careful. I'm going to make you make, you know? I said, nah, what is he talking about? But anytime I come close, he did it. For your legs? Yes, and I have to smash him. I think he's been the most magical player I've ever seen in football history. I've seen him do things that I've never seen in my life, in other players. For me, he's a different player. He's a magician. Everything he's done is magical. He's a genius. I think even, you know, even though I was in battles against him, I was like, sometimes I would laugh to myself if he's done a skill or nutmegged someone. But no, even as you're playing against him, you still enjoy watching him play, you know? The way he used to just float across the, you know, float across that turf, left, right. You know, he could do stepovers, he could find passes with every part of his foot. He was like a magician in there. Real Madrid's line-up that night included Zidane, Beckham, Roberto Carlos, Ronaldo and Raul. But that night belongs to Ronaldinho. Barcelona were already leading when Ronaldinho picked up the ball on the left side in the second half. He accelerated past Sergio Ramos, skipped past Ivan Hilguera and finished calmly past Iker Casillas. Just minutes later, it happened again. Ronaldinho attacked down the same flank, beat the defenders once more and placed the ball in the far corner. The score was now 3-0. And then, something rare happened. One by one, Real Madrid supporters inside the Santiago Bernabéu began to stand up. They applauded Ronaldinho. Moments like that are extremely rare in football. The last time the Bernabéu applauded an opposing player in that way was in 1983 when Diego Maradona did it for Barcelona. After the match, Ronaldinho admitted he didn't even realise the applause was for him at first. Only later did he understand what had happened. In one of football's fiercest rivalries, the Santiago Bernabéu had just applauded a Barcelona player. But for the people who trained with him every day, the magic wasn't only on the biggest stages. It was there every single morning. He had an aura, an energy as mad on his face that it was impossible to be next to him and be in a bad mood. I've never seen a talent like this in training, in every drill. It's like, how is this possible? Physically, it's impossible to do certain things. He's a genius. He was on a different dimension compared to the normal players. He was on a different level. He could do things very simple to do in his action, but for us, impossible. Because it's natural for him, but also, he's a nice guy, he's very simple, very humble. But there was one moment that even professional players couldn't explain. If the applause at the Bernabéu was recognition of Ronaldinho's greatness, the goal against Chelsea showed just how differently he saw the game. March 8th, 2005. Stamford Bridge, the second leg of the Champions League round of 16. Barcelona were already in trouble. Chelsea had scored three goals in the opening minutes and the game was slipping away. But just before half-time, Ronaldinho produced one of the most unusual goals in Champions League history. Ronaldinho received the ball just outside the penalty area. In front of him stood John Terry, Ricardo Cavallo and one of the best goalkeepers in the world, Petr Cech. For a moment, he slowed down. A few quick movements of the body, almost like a dance. The defenders froze. And then, without any back-lift, Ronaldinho struck the ball with the toe of his boot. Because the whole stadium went quiet. It's like everyone was just thinking, what happened there? What happened? I've never seen anything like it. Best goal I've ever seen. The shot flew past the defenders and rolled into the bottom corner. Petr Cech didn't even move. The worst thing is, it was so quick and so surprising that literally the moment I was ready to push, the ball was... I could see the ball literally by my side. Goalkeepers read the body. Ronaldinho removed that moment entirely. There was nothing to read. If you take my generation, we're all going to say Ronaldinho was favourite. But what he brought on the pitch, thank you. This guy just brought us emotion. Of course, Ronaldinho is a guy who inspired me. Not just me, but most Brazilians. He did unprecedented things. By 2005, Ronaldinho was already the face of Barcelona and the best player in the world. But inside the club, another story was just beginning. The 17-year-old Lionel Messi had started appearing from the bench. Late in the match against Albacete, Ronaldinho lifted a delicate chip over the defence. Messi ran onto it and chipped the goalkeeper. The ball went in, but the goal was disallowed for offside. A minute later, Ronaldinho tried exactly the same pass again. Messi ran through once more and this time, the goal counted. It was the first goal of Lionel Messi's professional career. And instead of celebrating alone, Ronaldinho lifted the 17-year-old onto his shoulders in front of the Camp Nou. It felt like more than just a goal. Almost like one era welcoming the next. For me, it was all very easy because Ronaldinho and the Brazilians immediately welcomed me, especially him, who was the team's leader. I learned a lot from him and I'm grateful for how he treated me from the start. Beyond football, Ronaldinho brought us joy, he brought us positivity, he brought us playing without complexes. Ronaldinho is entertainment. For Ronaldinho, I will pay whatever to see him on the pitch. Ronaldinho makes you smile. And in Barcelona, the fans never forgot what Ronaldinho gave them. Years after he left the club, Camp Nou would welcome him back one more time. On August 25th, 2010, Ronaldinho returned to Camp Nou with AC Milan for the Joan Gamper Trophy. More than 90,000 fans welcomed him back. Before kick-off, the stadium screens showed a tribute to his greatest moments in Barcelona. And then, something unusual happened. Barcelona captain Carlos Puyol walked to the Milan bench, took Ronaldinho by the hand and brought him into the official Barcelona team photo. Later that night, after Barcelona lifted the Gamper Trophy, Puyol handed the cup to Ronaldinho. The Camp Nou stood and applauded. It didn't feel like a farewell. It felt like an entire stadium saying thank you. And how would you want people to remember you? A happy man, Thanks for watching. If you like this, another one's waiting right here.