Ronaldo ready to make it a season to remember
19/09/2003
Ronaldo ready to make it a season to remember
|
MADRID, Sept 19 (Reuters) - World Player of the
Year Ronaldo is enjoying his football more than ever at Real Madrid and says the
Spanish champions could make it a season to remember.
"We're
all having fun while we're on the pitch," the Brazil striker told reporters on
Friday. "At times 90 minutes don't really seem enough because we are enjoying
ourselves so much."
"It
was much less fun at Inter (Milan) that's for sure."
Real
have started the season in impressive fashion and grabbed the headlines this
week after following up their 7-2 crushing of Valladolid at the Bernabeu with a
sparkling 4-2 win over Olympique Marseille in the Champions League.
"The
other day (against Marseille) we started to play after we went a goal behind and
made a fantastic comeback," said the former Barcelona player. "I think that with
the players we have in the team we could have an unforgettable season."
Ronaldo, who joined Real from Inter for 45 million euros ($50.83 million) at the
start of last season, has set himself a target of 35 goals in all competitions
this season.
Two
neat finishes in midweek against Marseille brought his total for the season to
five and the Brazilian, who turns 27 next week, sees no reason why his good run
should not continue.
"I'm
in good form at the moment," he said. "This is just the start, but my aim is to
score as many goals as possible and if I reach my target I will be doing my bit
for the team."
MORE
BALANCED
He
said the arrival of new signing David Beckham from Manchester United had helped
take some of the pressure off him.
"I'm a
lot calmer than last season because this time it is Beckham who is the centre of
attention, although having said that there are so many stars in the team that
the responsibility is divided between all of us."
But
the Brazilian said the England captain had also helped make Real a more balanced
team, especially since switching to the centre of midfield.
"Beckham
was already a great player at Manchester United, but he will become even better
at Real Madrid," he said.
"He
has brought extra quality to the midfield, he misses very few passes and is
surprising a lot of people. He is certainly proving his worth.
"Beckham
is very happy in the centre of midfield and has shown that in recent matches.
The other thing is that Figo is more at home on the (right) wing."
Real,
who are second in the Spanish first division, will be strong favourites to claim
another comfortable win when they travel to Malaga for their next league match
on Sunday.
The
Andalucians have earned just one point from their first three matches and have
yet to score a goal.
By
Simon Baskett