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You're listening to the Footglish Podcast. Love football, learn English.

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Is Cristiano Ronaldo a legend of football?

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Does the Portuguese team benefit from him playing every single minute of every single match and taking every single free kick?

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Is it time for Cristiano Ronaldo to go?

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And what do the verbs rant, tarnish and sulk mean?

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Hello listeners, welcome back to the Footglish Podcast.

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My name is Denek Lukas and you're listening to, hopefully, your favourite English learning podcast about football.

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And today I'm going to talk about Cristiano Ronaldo.

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I have to give you some context.

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I'm recording this episode right before the semi-finals of Euro 2024.

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And we know that Portugal have been eliminated. They are out of the tournament.

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Cristiano Ronaldo will not add another appearance to his tally.

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And I need to warn you, I really need to warn you.

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If you're one of those Cristiano Ronaldo fans, someone that will follow him everywhere,

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someone that will never accept any sort of criticism of your favourite player, of your idol, of your hero,

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then you might not necessarily like this episode.

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And that's because I'm going to give you my perspective on this player.

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I'm going to rant in this episode of the Footglish Podcast.

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So, if you can't stand criticism of your favourite hero,

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then I'm afraid you might not want to listen.

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You might not want to keep listening to this episode.

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Anyway, I'm telling you, this is just my personal opinion.

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This is my view, my perspective.

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I am someone who has played football himself and not at a professional level though.

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I've played football all my life. I've always loved it.

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But I've never been a professional footballer.

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I've got my views though. I've got my opinions.

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And that's what I'm going to give you today.

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So, we need to say that Cristiano Ronaldo is a true legend of football.

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In the last two decades, for sure, he has been one of the best players to run on the football pitch.

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That's without any shadow of a doubt.

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Absolutely, no one is going to dispute that.

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If you look at the statistics of the European Championships themselves,

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he holds the record for the most appearances with 30 caps for Portugal.

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In the second place, you have Pepe also from Portugal with 23.

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After that, Manuel Neuer from Germany with 20 and then other players.

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Then Cristiano Ronaldo also is the top goalscorer of all time of the European Championships with 14 goals.

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In the second place, you have Michel Platini of France and then Antoine Griezmann, Alan Chiren and Alvaro Morata with seven goals.

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We also have to say that Cristiano Ronaldo scored the most goals in the qualifiers.

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In the second place, you have Harry Kane with 29.

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We should also say that he is the best assistor of the game of Euros because he made 10 assists.

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In the second place, you have Andrej Arshavin, Bastian Schweidsteiger, Dani Olmo and Kevin de Bruyne with five assists.

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We need to give Cristiano Ronaldo a lot of credit.

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This is undoubtedly true and it cannot be questioned.

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It cannot be disputed.

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It will really be hard for anyone to break these records as well.

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But I would like to talk about Cristiano Ronaldo's role in the current Portuguese squad.

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As of now, like I said, Cristiano Ronaldo has not helped his team to progress in the tournament.

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They have been eliminated.

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Also, in this Euro, Cristiano Ronaldo has no goals.

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As far as I know, he has got one assist.

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Of course, we need to say that he missed a penalty and then he scored one in the shootout.

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It's that famous moment when after failing to score that penalty in the extra time, he started crying.

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Every other Portuguese player had to console him, had to hug him to make him feel better.

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Then he scored that goal and he was apologizing with a gesture to say,

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I'm sorry guys, but now I'm back. I'm back. I'm Cristiano Ronaldo.

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Basically, the argument I'm going to make here is that Ronaldo doesn't make his team better.

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It's the opposite.

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Ronaldo makes his team worse right now.

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It didn't used to be like this in the past.

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But the way it is now, the 39-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo with his mentality, he does.

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I know he's a hero.

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He's a legend of the football and he has a winning mentality and you want that in your team.

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But I think in some cases it may become a bit toxic and actually counterproductive.

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That's what's happening because it feels to me like every single time Portugal played,

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it was as if they played with 10 men.

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Cristiano Ronaldo does not press. He does not close players down.

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He doesn't really run much. He only runs.

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He makes a few sprints when it really matters, you could say.

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But those didn't lead to anything really apart from one goal that he really contributed to with that assist.

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I can't remember anything that Cristiano Ronaldo did in this tournament.

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Then you have the story of the free kicks.

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He takes every free kick you can imagine, every dangerous free kick, let's say.

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Of course, he doesn't take corners, right?

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But every dangerous free kick outside the box is his.

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He doesn't let anyone near the ball, except in the last game I think he let Bruno Fernandes take one free kick.

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But if you look at all big tournaments, Cristiano Ronaldo has actually taken 61 direct free kicks at major international tournaments.

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That's a large number.

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And guess how many goals he scored from those?

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Only one.

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In one game he managed to equalize with a free kick.

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You might remember it was a sensational one, but he is not the player he used to be.

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He does not score from free kicks anymore.

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Yet, for some reason, he seems to have this privilege to take every single free kick.

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No one can take the ball from him.

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There is a clear hierarchy in the Portuguese team and no one can.

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He's untouchable.

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Ronaldo is untouchable.

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He cannot be stopped.

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You know, he is just going to take the ball and shoot.

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Yes.

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So this is a problem in my opinion because you've got fantastic players in the team.

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Some young talents that could really help the team that the Portuguese team could benefit from.

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And Cristiano Ronaldo, he plays all the time.

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He never gets substituted.

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Yeah.

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This is weird because in the last World Cup in Qatar, it was different.

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I think the manager was different and he recognized that Cristiano Ronaldo wasn't the same player anymore.

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But of course, when Cristiano Ronaldo gets substituted or when he's not played by the manager, it creates problems.

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It creates rifts because Cristiano Ronaldo is never going to be happy about that.

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He's never going to accept that role of playing second fiddle.

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He always wants to play.

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Now, as a player, I understand that.

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But there comes a point where you have to realize that you are no longer that player and that you need to think about the team.

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You need to think about the bigger picture.

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You need to realize that you're actually dragging everyone down.

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You are not making things better for your team.

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And football is a team game.

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You should think about team success.

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And I don't think Cristiano Ronaldo is.

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Now, if you look at the number of minutes the Portuguese attacking players have had at this Euros, then you will learn something remarkable.

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Cristiano Ronaldo, 486 minutes.

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He played every single minute of the tournament that he could.

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He was never taken off.

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Right now, in the second place, you have the left winger Rafael Leo with 289 minutes.

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And after that, Francesco Conciusão, the right winger, with 181 minutes.

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And then Joel Felix with 105 minutes.

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So slightly above one game of football.

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Right.

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And then you have Pedro Neto, 121 minutes.

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Diego Jota, below 100 minutes.

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Yeah, this is unbelievable because you're talking about some excellent players who are in the team.

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Who are in their mid 20s or early 20s in case of Francesco Conciusão.

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So Cristiano Ronaldo is just taking their place in my opinion.

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He only plays because of his name.

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Yes, he is a legend.

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Yes, legends deserve respect.

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But, you know, should you never be substituted at the age of 39?

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Now, I know he's fit.

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I know he's in great shape.

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Like no one is denying that.

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No one is disputing that, of course.

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But to be honest, should you have a status like that?

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Should you have a position in a club like that?

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Some sort of god that no one can touch.

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Is that healthy for you?

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Is that healthy for your team?

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Or is it toxic?

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Now, remember Ronaldo's previous clubs, Juventus, right?

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Of course, Real Madrid, he was excellent there.

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But then there was a time where he decided to go.

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And then at Juventus, at first it was great.

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But then, you know, it wasn't that great anymore.

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Then he had a spell at Manchester United.

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Ten Hag played him the first season.

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But then it went downhill with him as well.

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And every time Ronaldo was substituted, his reaction was that he didn't think about the team.

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He thought about himself.

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He was angry.

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He was upset. He was sulking.

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He was not talking.

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He was just going absolutely nuts.

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He was going crazy.

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And every teammate in your team, if you do that, they can see that.

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They can see your reaction.

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But everybody's waiting for their chance.

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Yes, you admire your legends.

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For example, Bruno Fernandes.

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It's clear that Ronaldo is Bruno Fernandes' childhood idol, childhood hero.

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He has always said that.

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But are you going to sacrifice your own career really for this player who all he does is think about himself?

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He's a true... What's the word I'm looking for?

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He's a narcissist, right?

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It's all about himself.

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Even his celebrations, the famous CU celebration.

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It's just here I am.

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This is me.

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I scored another goal.

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I'm in the spotlight.

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There is no team celebration or anything like that.

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So my problem is...

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Now, of course, we should mention that no one wants Cristiano Ronaldo anymore in Europe, at least not for the money he would like.

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So he had to go to Saudi Pro League.

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No offense, but Saudi Pro League is nowhere near the European level.

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He's never going to play against excellent players there.

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He is just not.

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It's just journeymen going there or people who are nearing their retirement age and they just want to make some money before they retire.

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And Cristiano Ronaldo is playing in that league.

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He's slow.

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He's not getting any faster, of course.

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How could you at this age?

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Yeah, even being in excellent shape that he is, he's very strong.

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He still looks after his body in an amazing way.

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Of course, he's a role model for everyone.

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We should all follow his example.

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But football is a game where basically when you reach a certain age, you're not getting any better.

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And that's happening with Cristiano Ronaldo.

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I'm really sorry to say that.

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And I know it is really, really hard to go.

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It's really hard to say, to admit to yourself, it's time to go.

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Basically, I've been playing for too long now.

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Yeah, it's very hard to leave when you're at your best, but that's exactly what you should do.

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Otherwise, you're always risking that you might tarnish your legacy.

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Yeah, you might tarnish your reputation, basically.

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And that's what's happening to Cristiano Ronaldo, in my opinion.

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Yeah.

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And you just have to stop at some point.

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And he's not doing it.

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At some point, we just are not getting any fitter.

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It's in the same way.

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We are all going to die at some point.

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I'm sorry to say that, but we are all going to die at some point.

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In the same way, you're not going to be any better at some point when it comes to football,

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because it is about speed.

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It is about strength.

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It is about being fit.

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And yeah, I know Cristiano Ronaldo is semi-god.

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He's more than a human.

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But let's be honest, he still is a human.

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Yeah.

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You know what?

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I played football at a village level for a long time.

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And the last five years of my footballing career was pretty bad.

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I have to admit it.

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I kept playing.

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I was usually in the starting eleven, but I had health issues.

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Suddenly, I was slower.

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I didn't score as many goals as I used to.

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My role in the team was not what I expected.

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I didn't have the ball as often as I used to.

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And I wasn't as important for my team as I used to.

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And I did not like it, but I kept playing because I obviously have always loved this sport.

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It's something I cannot explain to anyone unless you have played this sport yourself.

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No one will understand that.

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And yes, the last five years of my career, I really felt frustrated every single time I played.

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I have to admit it.

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I was not happy because I knew it wasn't me.

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I knew I couldn't produce the same kind of performances that I did before.

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And it was frustrating me.

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So I cannot imagine how Cristiano Ronaldo must feel when he basically finishes this tournament without any goals to his tally.

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He has zero goals.

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A player like that, how can he be happy?

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How can he not realize that it's time to go?

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And I know, don't get me wrong, hanging up your boots is the toughest decision to make.

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Imagine you love something so much and you have to say it's the end.

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Imagine the moment you have to realize you can't go on anymore.

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The thing is, most of us will just keep going until the last moment.

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Even if it hurts, and believe me, it hurt the last five years, it hurt more and more.

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When you wake up next day in the morning, you feel it.

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You feel every inch of your body.

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And I'm pretty sure that with these professional players, it's even worse.

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They're just not talking about it.

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The thing is, you're following your heart all the time.

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Your brain is telling you, you need to stop.

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I'm sure that's what Cristiano Ronaldo's brain is telling him, to stop playing, to retire.

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But his heart is stronger, just like mine was.

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And that's why he cannot end his career yet.

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And it's about losing something that has been a huge part of your life.

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You don't want to let go of it.

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You just don't.

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You don't want to lose that emotion of being on the pitch, being part of a team, making an assist,

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scoring a brilliant goal, heading the ball, making a tackle.

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There is not a better feeling than that, guys.

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It's not even anywhere near having sex.

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It's like that, believe me.

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And only people who have played football will understand that.

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When I finally retired about two years ago, I knew it was the right decision.

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Finally, my brain overcame my heart, so to speak.

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But Cristiano Ronaldo's heart is still pumping.

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He loves football, he breathes football, but objectively, he should go.

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I mean, if he played for a team like San Marino or Liechtenstein or even in Saudi Pro League, yeah, fair enough.

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If you get the money, you're getting there.

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Who wouldn't want that?

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But when it comes to international football, Portugal is one of the favorites of these large tournaments.

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Portugal has one of the finest players in their squad.

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You are taking someone's spot, Cristiano.

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You are killing someone else's dream.

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I'm sorry, he is a bit of a narcissist.

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He has no humility. It's just arrogance.

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Now, I know some people have been telling me, read his books.

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What he had to go through, you will understand what he had to go through to become the player he is.

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Now I respect that.

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I understand that when you achieve something, you become a bit arrogant as well.

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There is a certain element of arrogance about you and it's unavoidable, it's inevitable, and it's probably also deserved.

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I get that.

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But I think you also need a bit of humility.

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If you have no humility, I think it will simply create problems.

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But the weird thing is we all admire these people who believe in themselves, who have zero doubts about themselves, who are just arrogant, like 100% self-belief.

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Because we all want to be like that.

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We all want to have that confidence and arrogance and the winning mentality.

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Now look at some politicians that are followed all over the world.

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Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, Andrei Babish, Orban.

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How could these people have so many followers?

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I don't get it. I don't understand it.

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Their arrogance is horrible.

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This is what I'm telling you.

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A lot of people are like sheep.

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They like to be led by others because it's easier.

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And often your leader is someone like that.

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Someone like that, some kind of hero that you admire.

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And I'm sorry, but you have to look at the bigger picture here.

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You have to look at all the aspects of the game here.

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Cristiano Ronaldo does not help the Portuguese national team get better.

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He is dragging his team down.

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Bruno Fernandes is just tolerating him because he respects him so much.

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And so do the other players.

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The manager is basically just...

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The manager is not there. It's just Cristiano Ronaldo himself.

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He decides who will play.

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If Cristiano Ronaldo will play, it's decided by Cristiano Ronaldo.

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No one else, right?

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So I think Cristiano Ronaldo is deluded at this point and that's why he should go.

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This will keep happening, by the way.

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If this continues, and I don't think he's going to get any better,

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and he will start at the next tournament and he will play all the minutes again,

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he will take all the free kicks,

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unfortunately there will be more voices like this,

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there will be more criticism and he is going to tarnish his legacy of a legend.

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That's what's going to happen.

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Come on Cristiano Ronaldo, it's time to go.

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We all love you, we respect you,

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but why don't you give the opportunity to the younger players?

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It's for the best.

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Your team, your country will benefit from it.

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Yeah?

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I think that's what needs to happen.

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I hope you understand what I was trying to tell you in this episode of the Footgrish podcast.

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It was slightly different to the normal episodes and feel free to dispute with me.

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Feel free to have a debate, send me an email at teachesdenek at gmail.com.

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Tell me what you think and thank you for listening.

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I will speak to you soon.

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Of course, don't forget there will be the language corner right after this.

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Alright everyone, welcome back to the language corner.

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You know what's going to happen in this part of the show?

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Well, kudos to you for not leaving after me being so critical of Cristiano Ronaldo.

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Listen, I know he's a legend and I do look up to him, I do respect him,

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but sometimes you just have to go.

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And I do understand the footballing emotions because I've played football myself.

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I also do understand how to teach English.

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So that's what's going to happen now.

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I've written down a few verbs and two phrases that I want to go through.

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I said I'm going to rant in this episode.

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What does it mean to rant or to have a rant?

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Well, it means to speak, write or shout in a loud, often uncontrolled or angry way.

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And you're doing this usually for a reason because something really triggered you.

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And sometimes you sound a bit silly or confused

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and you say things which are all over the place.

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So perhaps this was a bit of a rant.

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I think that's quite a fitting word to describe this episode.

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Then I said Cristiano Ronaldo will never accept the role of second fiddle.

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Now there's a phrase in English, to play second fiddle.

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It basically means to have a role where you are less important than someone else.

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So when someone plays second fiddle, they're usually on the bench

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or they are the second striker or the third striker in the hierarchy.

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Cristiano Ronaldo will never accept this role of second fiddle.

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He will never want to do that, right?

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He will always want to be the number one.

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OK, I know he's in great shape, I said.

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Well, this is quite a common expression.

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If you are in good shape or in great shape,

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it means that your health or your physical condition is excellent.

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That pretty much means that he's still very fit.

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Then I said he was angry, he was upset, he was sulking.

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Remember I was talking about his second spell at Manchester United.

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I think first it was possibly Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but then...

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No, hang on, it was Ralf Ragnick and then Eric Ten Hag, I think.

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And I said Ronaldo was sulking when he was substituted,

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especially by Eric Ten Hag.

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He didn't take it very well. He was sulking.

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This is what children do, they sulk.

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So, sulking, to sulk, it basically means that you are silent

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and you refuse to smile, you have an upset face, you're very grumpy.

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You don't want to talk to anyone

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because you feel that those people have done something to you, right?

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So if you get substituted,

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or if the media tell you something that you don't like to hear,

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then you're not going to talk to them, right? You sulk.

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And Cristiano Ronaldo was always very good at this.

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Then I said you're always risking that you might tarnish your legacy.

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Basically, if Cristiano Ronaldo keeps playing, even after he turns 40,

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he is risking his own reputation, he's risking his legacy,

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his status of a legend, he's risking that he might tarnish his legacy,

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he might tarnish his reputation.

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What does it mean to tarnish something?

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Well, it basically means that people will think that something,

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or someone in this case, is less good than it is.

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Nobody would doubt that Cristiano Ronaldo has achieved huge things,

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but if he keeps playing, people might remember the last few years, right?

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So it might make him look worse,

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because people might remember that last period.

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It might tarnish his legacy.

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Alright, and then I said he isn't making his team better,

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he's dragging his team down, to drag someone down.

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If you drag someone down, you're basically...

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The reason why your team is getting worse, right?

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Because of you. Because of you playing in that team.

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You have a negative influence, you have a negative impact on your team.

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Alright, that's it. Thank you very much for listening.

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If you did enjoy this episode, please let me know,

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send me an email at teachersdeneck at gmail.com,

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and as always, keep on listening.

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Thank you very much and take care. Bye bye everyone.