Both Portuguese players have fond memories of their time at the Spanish club, but they now play for different teams.
Despite the gap between them, they also share the Portugal National Team’s dressing room. Pepe had always expressed his love for his countryman, but he had never revealed anything interesting about his personality.
You’re all aware of Pepe’s tenacity as a defender, which is why Ronaldo still looks after him. In reality, Cristiano was always by his side when the Porto player suffered a severe head injury.
People were unaware of this until Pepe wanted to reveal it in a recent interview. Yet another example of Ronaldo’s integrity.
Pepe said the following in a recent interview with TNT Sports Brasil’s Facebook channel:
“I deeply admire Cris and people know this from our time in Madrid. To me, he is the best player in football history. He managed to do what no other player did before him.
Ronaldo won in England, Spain, Italy, and with the Portugal National Team. We are 10 million people here. He was our captain and a lot of people criticize him without knowing what happens within. Just look at what he did at the Euros.
“When he gave Moutinho the chance to take a penalty, the greatness he showed in that moment. That’s his main characteristic. I cut my head open and said: ‘Pepe, hitting yourself in the head is dangerous’.
He was with me in Real Madrid, when Casillas knocked me out twice. There was one time when he visited me in the hospital because he saw the situation was very serious.
He told me that hitting your head was very dangerous. When I left the pitch the last time he faced me, he said: ‘You will play because I want to win with you on the pitch’. I responded by saying: ‘Okay, you’ll win with me on the pitch but I will win the round’.”
