Former England and Real Madrid boss Fabio Capello has admitted that he is “still proud” of his decision to sell Ronaldo because “he was very fond of parties and women".
The Italian authoritarian arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu ahead of the 2006/07 season for his second spell in charge of the Spanish giants having previously been named head coach a decade earlier - winning the La Liga title in his first season in charge.
One of Capello’s more controversial decisions in charge of Real Madrid was to sell Brazilian icon Ronaldo midway through the campaign to Serie A giants AC Milan.
The two-time World Cup winner had established himself as one of the best forwards in the history of the game during spells with Barcelona, Inter Milan and of course Real Madrid.
However, his powers were already on the wane during his final days in the Spanish capital and Capello made the decision to sever ties with the forward - a decision that he holds no regret over as it led to Real reclaiming the La Liga title amid disgruntlement over Ronaldo’s personal life and work ethic.
Speaking with A Bola, the Italian said: “Being a Real Madrid coach is a huge responsibility. In my second spell, the decision to send Ronaldo away and sign Cassano helped to create a winning spirit in the team.
Image:
Getty Images)“We regained nine points behind Barcelona with 10 games to go, and I'm still proud of that today.
“I remember Silvio Berlusconi [former AC Milan owner] calling me to ask how Ronaldo was doing. I told him that he didn't even train himself and that he was very fond of parties and women, so hiring him would be a mistake. The next day I saw the headline in the newspaper and it was Ronaldo in Milan. It was very funny.”
Ronaldo only went on to make 20 appearances for AC Milan due to weight and injury problems keeping him restricted to the sidelines. He only had two years in Italy before returning to Brazil with Corinthians, where he elected to round off his career.
In the meantime, Capello only lasted a further few months at Real Madrid after he decided to sell Ronaldo. Despite having lifted the title at the end of the campaign, the Italian was sacked less than a year after returning to the club.
He was then appointed as the England manager only months later having penned a four-and-a-half year deal with The FA.
Despite a relatively impressive record, the Italian’s spell in charge of the Three Lions was ultimately unsuccessful having only managed to reach the last-16 of the 2010 World Cup, whilst the Italian resigned ahead of the 2012 Euros following the decision to strip John Terry of the England captaincy.