Juventus fullback Dani Alves has revealed the truth behind all his fights with Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo when he was an FC Barcelona player.
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The Brazilian had many public spats in the press with the Portugal captain during his time in La Liga. However, the 33-year-old right back has now insisted that he respects Ronaldo as a player, and that many of his comments were taken the wrong way by members of the media.
"All my fights with Cristiano were because of the press," Alves said in an interview with ABC.
"If people only knew how much I respect Cristiano Ronaldo. I will repeat it to make myself clear: I respect Cristiano Ronaldo.
"Everyone tells me what a fantastic professional he is. As for CR7, it's different, he was my rival and I had to compete with him.
"When I said he always wanted the limelight, that when you win you are going to be the star but when you lose they will go for you, I said it in a very respectful way.
"And I think the same of (Lionel) Messi or Neymar. But my thoughts were not negative. What happens is that the press sold them differently, saying that I had spoken ill of him. And Ronaldo believed it.
"That's why he did not greet me at the Ballon d'Or gala in 2015. I do not need to talk about anyone to go out in the newspapers. I have no ego."
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Alves made 391 appearances for the Blaugrana, scoring 21 goals and assisting a further 102 strikes during his time at the Camp Nou.
Are you surprised by what Alves has said about the press misinterpreting his words about Ronaldo in the past? Have your say in the comments section below.
