http://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/ronaldinho-chelsea-were-hardest-english-team-face-and-they-tried-sign-me

The two-time FIFA World Player of the Year has been courted by a host of English clubs during a career that has included spells in the French, Spanish, Italian and Brazilian top flights.

Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City, Blackburn, QPR, Stoke and even Basingstoke Town have all been linked with deals for the 2002 World Cup winner over the years, to no avail, with the attacker returning to Brazil in 2011 after winning the Champions League with Barcelona and Serie A at Milan.

But speaking exclusively in the March 2017 issue of FourFourTwo – having invited us round to his Rio de Janeiro apartment – the Samba star admits a transfer to England would have been memorable had he taken the plunge.

“I don’t regret not having played in England, but it could have been special because it’s a fantastic league,” he says. “Chelsea tried to take me there once, and some other teams were interested in signing me, too.

“The league there is so fast and so intense all of the time – it’s great to watch and not boring at all. I don’t tend to watch all 90 minutes of Premier League games, but I will see more of the highlights and the goals in the Premier League than other leagues around the world.”

Barcelona and Chelsea were involved in several titanic Champions League tussles while Ronaldinho was at the Camp Nou, with the Blues prevailing in 2005 despite the Brazilian scoring one of the greatest goals in the competition’s history.

“There was a lot of futsal in that goal,” he explains. “It was just a solution I found at that very moment, I didn’t plan it. Futsal is beautiful – not as much as it used to be, like in the days when keepers couldn’t also be strikers – but it is still beautiful.”

Barça got their own back by eliminating Chelsea a year later, and the pair then clashed again the following season in two group games. Unsurprisingly, Ronnie says the Blues were the hardest team he faced during his Blaugrana days.

“In Europe it had to be Chelsea,” he says. “We played against them every year in the Champions League – it was always fierce.”

Great player and great guy by all accounts.

I have nothing but respect for him. In the mid-2000s, he was the player I dreaded most watching against us because he was so damaging and lethal with the ball.

Always remember that goal he scored against us for Barca back in 2005, zero back lift and just stabbed it past a rooted Cech. 

40 minutes ago, Blue Exile said:

Always remember that goal he scored against us for Barca back in 2005, zero back lift and just stabbed it past a rooted Cech. 

Over the years, i have seen a lot of people say that goal was overrated. I don't know how they can say that. Pretty much everybody that was watching it was completely shocked by it, it took me a few seconds to realise what he had just done. When a goal does that to somebody, you know it's something special. He was also playing against the best goalkeeper and defence in the world at the time.

For a period of around 5 years no one was on the same level as Ronaldinho,  one of the most gifted footballers I have ever seen. He did things with a football no other player in history could....such a wonderful talent. 

Not only in europe, we're definitely the toughest opponent he ever faced.. real madrid was average at that time..

I count myself lucky to have been at the bridge that night...the best match I have ever seen live at the bridge and as you guys say, everyone in the ground was baffled, amazed by what Ronaldinho did...imo, that Barca team was the best I have seen...certainly attacking wise...unlike under Pep, it was passing and skill but at pace, which is what made them so difficult to contain/beat...still hurts that we beat such an outstanding team, then Bayern, only to lose to a sh*t Liverpool team

It is always genuine when it's from Ronaldinho. No pretentions from this guy.

Pure class!

What a transfer that would have been, Ronaldinho 10 printed on a Chelsea shirt.

I would still be wearing my shirt now if that was the case. Absolute baller he was.

One pf the silkiest players ever

On ?19?/?02?/?2017 at 10:54, Jezz said:

Great player and great guy by all accounts.

I have nothing but respect for him. In the mid-2000s, he was the player I dreaded most watching against us because he was so damaging and lethal with the ball.

Totally agree with you.

Some goal he scored at The Bridge back in 2005.

Amazing player.

The fact that he didn't sustain his longevity hinders his legacy to an extent, but I think at his absolute peak (2004-2007) he was a better player than Messi and Ronaldo.