At 23 Who’s Better - Rooney or Bellingham? | Portugal Have Handled Ronaldo “Poorly”

0:00Therapy's biggest impact doesn't show up in some dramatic breakthrough. It shows up in the smallest moments. You bite your tongue instead of escalating. You put your phone down instead of firing off that text. You say what you actually mean instead of what would hurt someone else the most. Nobody applauds those moments, but they quietly change your life. That's what growing feels like. And that's exactly what Grow Therapy is here for. Grow is therapy that works, covered by insurance. Sessions average$21 with insurance, and some pay as little as$0, depending on their plan. There are no subscriptions, no long-term commitments.

0:37You just pay per session. Grow connects you with thousands of high-quality, licensed therapists across the U.S., offering both virtual and in-person sessions, nights and weekends. You can search by what matters, like insurance, specialty, identity, or availability. And you can book a therapy session in minutes and begin in as little as two days, not the national 48-day average. See if you could pay as little as$0 for therapy in seconds at growtherapy.com slash start now. That's growtherapy.com slash start now. growtherapy.com slash start now. Availability and coverage vary by state and insurance plan.

1:27I mean, I don't think he gets a lot of credit for 08 because Ronaldo scored 42 goals and was outrageous. But Wayne Rooney was the first name on a lot of team sheets, I think still at that time. If you look during that period in the 08-09 period, how many players were better than Wayne Rooney? Of course you had Messi. you add cristiano and messi yeah and then everybody else that's it yeah yeah right now okay what right now then who's better than who's better than um jude

2:02yes guys welcome to another episode of rio presents i've got mr joel bear here and mr steve house and my two usual up-to-date ready-to-go co-hosts they're always with me man and today guys we're going to discuss, there's a few things to discuss, by the way. Top of that list has to be Mr. Drew Bellinem. Mr. Drew Bellinem. You've got to say it three times. Mr. Drew Bellinem. He's deserving them type of intros now, what he's doing on a regular basis. Mr. Consistency. Roy Keane said the other day, I saw it. He said that he could become one of the greatest players of all time. Boy. Big, big, big, big, big licks from Mr.

2:38Roy Keane. He don't give out compliments like that normally. So he must have been doing something when he watched the game live. And we'll look at how he's taken his game to another level. Ballon d 'Or shouts are hotting up. And we'll look at all the contenders, by the way. I think Jude Zane will be thrown in there. But I think last season, he had too much time off. There was injuries and he wasn't at the level that he was the year before. And there's been a few that's just, I think, have cooked him this year. And you know what, guys? What's going on at Portugal? What is going on there, by the way?

3:07You tell us. You tell us, bro. I think he's been handled poorly. Poorly. The new managers come in and just thought he's Sir Alex Ferguson or Pep on what grounds I don't know. Right? And it's divided the nation. So we're going to analyse that. We'll get into that too, guys. Right? But let's start, guys, with Jude. It's been week. It's been international week. England have played. Lads, what did you make of his performance? I think he's in a vein of form at the moment and not just goal scoring. I think that the technical ability, the influence on games, we saw it at a World Cup. We're still seeing it.

3:42We're seeing it in a Real Madrid shirt. I'm seeing the compilations of skills that are Zidane-esque from him. Those little pirouettes that he does, keeping the ball close inside his body, turning his back on people. Very Zidane-esque, which is mad really considering what he's done in international football compared to, I think Zidane might have only been this age when he made his international debut, actually. His performances are making Roy Keane's shout not look insane. that's what I'd say and it's such a big claim from Roy Keane but it doesn't look mental it's not one where you sit there going oh come on Roy no you go I can see why you're saying that to be honest with you Steve can I add and Rio I had the chance again like I said I've been in and out of the England camp and just to give you guys some insight right he is running the camp with respect with respect to Harry Kane because everybody knows that H is the captain but there's something about the aura Rio.

4:42I've seen him at St. George's. He's mingling with the staff. I saw him with like four staff ladies around him. Like just, he's entertaining everyone in conversation. You're going to start a room as to them type of shout. No, no. When I mean staff ladies, I mean, I meant the elder ladies as well, by the way, you know what I mean? Like the recept, like, but I'm just seeing the way he, he coordinates the room and he's in charge. I have to say he is the best thing that I've seen in an England shirt. for a long time. It's crazy because we had Thiago Alicantara came on, didn't he, right? And he said that Jose, when he went in to Real Madrid, Jose Mourinho will get levels out of Jude beyond even what he saw before.

5:20And this season, I mean, Barcelona are still top, but Jude personally, individually, has got nine goal involvements in 10 games this season. And he started all but one of Real Madrid's games this season so far. And do you know what? I think we need to have a little bit of context. And because he plays a position that the likes of Steven Gerrard, Scholes, Lampard, Zidane's of this world, even Xavi is a bit deeper, Iniesta's of this world. We're talking like Luka Modric, the best midfielders of generation just before, right? I think for context, it's important that we look at, because we're in a world of comparisons now, right?

5:55And if you compare what he's achieved at this age, at 23 years old, to the other guys I just mentioned, and you look at Gerrard, right? He was only just named Liverpool captain at 23. Lampard signed for Chelsea six days before his 23rd birthday Zidane he was aged 26 when he made a big impression on a world stage in a World Cup obviously but he was 26 by then and by the way Zidane didn't make his international debut until he was 22 years old right Xavi he was just about to become a key player for Barcelona and he didn't win his first Champions League until he was 26 years old right And when you put it like that, it's like, I'm not saying he's better than any of these guys yet, right?

6:42Because it's too early in his career. But at 23 years old, by comparison at the same age, he's dwarfing all of these other guys. None of those names I just mentioned can look at him and talk to him at 23 years old. Now, I've seen comparisons with Zidane, et cetera. He's got to win a lot of stuff to get past someone like Zidane. But one thing I would say, it's not impossible. I think it could be there. It could be done. And I think he's going to score more goals and have more assistance. Zidane, right? But the difference with Zidane is he'll never look as artistic and as poetry in motion is the phrase that's alongside someone like Zidane's name.

7:24No one's going to look as smooth as Zidane. On the eye, he looks better than anybody, Zidane. Agreed. but in terms of having impact and what he probably could do at the end of his career he has a real chance to surpass those names that I just mentioned there because he's still so young and he's controlling, grabbing, winning games on his own at times and he's becoming, that game against Croatia was like a man against boys. He looked like the big kid in the playground with the ball and when he decided to take that ball off the pitch he could walk off it and no one could talk to him, even a captain.

8:01That's how he looks. So you look at his - Can I throw a name in the mix that we've not said? When he was 23, it was the 2008 into 2009 season, and that was Wayne Rooney. Yes, Steve. Yes. Where does he stack up to a Wayne Rooney in 08, 09? because let's be honest, that's about as good as we've seen. Oh. Oh, Steve! Oh. Waza was a, he was a fucking animal. Rio, Rio. I don't think he gets a lot of credit for 08 because Ronaldo scored 42 goals and was outrageous. But Wayne Rooney was, it was the first name on a lot of team sheets, I think still. Guys, let me tell you something, yeah? I don't think Jude Bellenum is at that level yet.

8:54I think he may surpass it, but I think what Wayne Rooney was doing, everyone's going, ah, you know, Jude's the best English player that we've seen. Okay, maybe in an England shirt. Yes, he's got it. But when you look at club football and football overall, no one was doing what Wayne Rooney was doing. People are forgetting 18-year-old scoring a hat-trick on his Man United debut, Wayne Rooney. People are forgetting what Rooney was doing to Arsenal on a daily basis. People are forgetting 0-4 Rooney for England against Turkey, against all these teams. Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah. Pull up the stats.

9:27Hold on quickly. How many goals had Wazir had by this time, please? How many goals? Because he's got 91 goals to date. Which is a lot, which is a lot. Only Kylian Mbappe has scored more World Cup goals by this age in the history of the World Cup. I love Jude. He's my favourite player right now. But Rooney at that age? No, I don't think it's an easy one. I don't think you can sit there and go, oh my God, it's 100 % Jude or 100 % Waza. Like Waza was doing a madness back then. He had people on toast. He had seasoned pros wishing that he weren't born. If you look during that period in the 08, 09 period, how many players were better than Wayne Rooney?

10:10Of course you had Messi. You had Cristiano and Messi. Yeah, and then everybody else. That's it. Yeah, yeah. Right now. Okay, right now then, who's better than Jude? There's a few going to be in the argument right now. There's going to be Mbappe. You're going to put Mbappe. You're going to put Harry Kane right now, maybe. Yeah, maybe. Argue. Alise on the last season. And Yamal. I think Yamal's the baddest out of all of them right now, if I'm honest with you. Well, besides Kylian, I think, you know, so there's a few more. I think Belen is in that mix. He's in there with all of them, yeah? but I don't know, man.

10:49It's hard. I just love, what I love about Jude, yeah, he is the human Swiss army knife. He can do anything. He can run past you with the ball. He can out-muscle and power you. He can be sublime with skills and deft touches like he showed again the other day. He can play around the corner. He's got wing mirrors on. He knows what's coming behind him. He can receive the ball in tight areas and beat the press. He's a transition player with or without the ball and he scores goals. And by the way, he scores the biggest goals as well. He's an absolute joke. So did Rooney. Our stats man has come back.

11:24Our stats man has come back. The same age comparisons. At 23 years old, people, Wayne Rooney, 118 goals. Beninem, 82. There's a gap of 36 goals with Rooney predominantly a forward and Beninem a midfielder as well. So... No, no, no, no, no, no, no. That's far too black and white of a description of what they are. Those first couple of seasons at Real Madrid, before they got Mbappe, Belly Gun was the one that was getting into the box. It was the first season. And also, Wayne Rooney was not the out-and-out forward until that 08-09 season. Yeah, yeah. He was playing wide and stuff like that, or in a 10.

12:05Yeah. Yeah. They actually play way... They're way closer in terms of the positions that they occupy on the pitch than people want to admit. Rooney would have been probably half a step further forward but and expected to contribute more but Jude does not occupy midfield in the same way like a Declan Rice or an Elliot Anderson does he gets nowhere near those areas no and you know what what I think was great about Jude he's more than a footballer he's like a talisman now like you see Alex Scott talking about him saying like I'm the same age as Jude but he's someone a reference point who we look up to and all the younger players look up to he's 23 years old bro he's crazy what a guy like he's just he if there's ever a full package in world football right now I'm not saying the best player but if there's like who's one of the top players oh it's him looks the part sounds the part is the part it's Drew Benham Rio would he have got into your best Man United team ever you'd have to find a space for him somewhere I don't know who he takes out that's the problem I don't know who comes out but because in the midfield too, you've got like Roy Keane, Paul Scholes or Carrick in two of those positions.

13:21Do you know what I mean? That's where he's got to go on. Right, listen, Carrick would definitely have to sit out if Jude's there. Let's not beat around the bush. He's sitting out. Totally different role, mate. Yeah, it don't matter. But this is how good Jude is. I'm telling you right now, even though Carrick's a master of his position. Does he play before Roy Keane, do you think? Yeah. No, bro. You can't. Yeah, yeah, yeah, he does. Rookie's the best midfielder that made. We're talking high-side careers and everything, but I don't care. I don't care. Jude is that guy old, Joel. I don't think I've ever played in a game in the Premier League and seen one man run a whole game and run the other 21 players on the pitch.

14:00Run them all. The away team and the home team. He run all of them. I've never seen anything like it. You didn't watch Rookie enough to... No, I did. I did, but the difference is... The difference is Rio, yeah? The difference is Rio. I'll take that. The difference is Rio, yeah? I, like, Jude is doing it on international level as well. Some might say that their countries weren't the same, etc. Hey, that's not Roy's fault. That's not Jude's fault. But I've seen this guy do it at club level, European nights, just like Roy Keane, and also on an international stage. Better than everybody else on the international stage.

14:34If Roy Keane was English, do you not think he would have been bossing that whole midfield for England? I don't know, because you guys couldn't get it right with the dream team, with the golden generation, so I can't say that. Roy Keane was the best midfielder in the Premier League for a number of years. So if he was in a better team at a national level, I don't think it changed anything for him. He just plays the same level. So you just got to take that argument away, because it wasn't possible to be looked at. In the Premier League, in the club football, Roy Keane, probably arguably one of the most dominant players that I've played around against or fought with.

15:06he is. But Jude is on another level. Listen, you mentioned Alex Scott earlier on. Could he become key to Thomas Tuchel's side? Yeah, he could. I think he could. I think Alex Scott's got a lot. I think there's a difference between him, Rice, and Anderson. He's different to those two. It's a big call for the manager, though. He seems to really like Declan Rice, and he seems to really like Anderson. I would play one of those two, and I'd probably veer towards Declan Rice that's who I'd play in the holding role and then I'd play two eight stroke tens Do you think he'd play Scott over Maynou though?

15:44Yeah He wouldn't even give Maynou a minute out of Wofford because I think he will play Scott over Maynou because I clearly think he doesn't like him but like should he play Scott over Maynou? It depends what he wants Scott is very different to the two guys Rice and Anderson can take the ball can beat the press very decent on transitions Kobi Meynu is you could have been saying I'm talking about Kobi Meynu there right but I just don't think that Thomas Tuchel really I don't think he rates Kobi Meynu to the level of other midfielders that he has available to him and I just really do think that because he's had enough opportunities to play Kobi Meynu even Lewis Skelly comes in and plays before Kobi Meynu and gets more air time and I think and I really do think that's just down to one thing and I think it's physicality because I think the rest of his game, Kobe, is exquisite.

16:35And I think it's the physicality side, which Thomas Tuchel looks at and goes, I want someone more dynamic. But I would play Kobe Mainu, me personally, because I just think he's a wonderfully gifted player. And what I saw at the Euros that year leads me to believe that international football suits him more than most and he can adapt for that better. Rio, just to add as well, I know I've been banging on about me being at the England camp. When I went to the last camp before the World Cup, the best two players besides Harry Kane was Jude Bellingham and Kobe Mainu. The way they were keeping the ball.

17:10You know that, you know the expression that Steve says? It's like this Velcro stuck to his boots. It was the first time that I saw it. I think you'll find, I think you'll find that's what I say. Oh, sorry. Whoever says it. Honestly, it's spot on. It really is. Right. Still loads to come on this pod. We'll be back shortly after this.

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19:23Steve, I wanted to ask, obviously Chelsea are leading a race with Arsenal and Liverpool, also interested. If you're Alex Scott, where would you go? There's a lot of competition at Arsenal. I don't know if he definitely plays. Liverpool might be a good shout for him, to be honest. I like Scott. I think he's a real technical player. But I think England have got this problem with technical players. And this might even expand to Manu as a wider comment. But if you look at the decades, there was Hoddle, probably more of Rio's era, never really managed to build a team around getting the best out of Glenn Hoddle, who was an absolute magician as a footballer.

20:09Paul Scholes absolutely dominated and won everything there was to win for United and got called, cool story, nerd, go and stand over on the left wing. Like, what are we doing? And Alex Scott's probably not quite on Glenn Oddle and Paul Scholes' sort of level. But when you look at some of those players that have come through like that, there's never been an England squad that's gone, do you know what, what a player we've got here. Let's build something around them. And I genuinely do believe Kobi Manu is probably one of those players where you go, no, no, no, no. Not necessarily above Jude Bellingham, but somewhere where you go, if we can have someone that will do the dirty work for those two what an unbelievable asset that could be to any team and then obviously you've got the pace ahead of them which I think in the Croatia game really shone didn't it I'll take that even further Steve because I was thinking about this the other day that's where I think Palmer sits and they feel Foden them two boys there I've heard too many players from foreign other countries go if they were from my country they'll be one of the first names on the sheet.

21:19Brazilian, Spanish, Italian. I've heard them all say it. But we fail to get the best out of these creative mavericks that we produce. And we don't produce a load of them, but those players don't get lost in other countries. Look at the way Cherky's being treated by Zidane now because he's a precocious talent, somebody who's different. And you know, and Olise, they know that these guys can't sit down and watch because they are too good. They're the locksmiths. They're the guys that unlock the tightest defence. they're the ones that undo the puzzles they do the sudoku's that are on the pitch they do all this stuff so and we have those players and don't either don't pick them or just don't give them the minutes kobi main is one of those guys palmer's one of those guys foden's one of those guys now we can talk about form etc but i do believe that sometimes you've got to give these guys the platform to go and perform and build around those types of players if you want to get the best out of them.

22:11Do you know what I mean? Paul Scholes had to play left midfield for England, guys. This is the guy that Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry, Xavi, Iniesta, Pirlo, that when I sit and chat to them, the first person they ask me about is Paul Scholes. What is he like, Rio? They're sitting there like kids at reading time on the mat with their legs folded, wanting to ask me questions about one person and one person only and his pool skulls and we had him playing left midfield for england guys this is what we do to our best players glenn hodd was the most talented player that we had before we started seeing gaza and them man there the guy couldn't get an england shirt on his back join another one matt letizia go on matt letizia that's a good one guys guys you guys who have never heard of this guy who haven't seen him please go on youtube and look up matt Letizia's best goals.

23:04He will stand head and shoulders with anyone in the world in terms of quality goals with the left and the right foot. He was the joke. But couldn't get near England. And listen, just to be honest, England at the time had some wonderful players, right? Don't get me wrong, some great goal scorers. But they didn't have talent like that who saw the game through a different lens. Like, imagine playing, I'll just look at it as a defender. If I'm playing against a midfielder, if I'm lining up and it's Bellingham and Palmer in the eight stroke tens. It's a long, it's a long day. It's a long day. It's a long day.

23:39There's no, there's no other way around this. And that I, it's weird because I've just done an interview with Ander Herrera, who played for some clubs, by the way, paid for Boca Juniors. Now, uh, up until recently, uh, athletic Bilbao, Zara Gopher, where he started and where he's going to finish playing for free, by the way, we're digging into that paid for May United and PSG, right? and he gives us some fascinating insight that's sick yeah the next time England play Spain next month he'll be on right but you know what he talks about how England players are compared to Spanish players quite insightful and it's really good it kind of goes with what we're talking about here Rio you said that you liked what Anthony Gordon said last week about not trying to be Spain this is what Harry Kane said about that 7-0 win against Croatia he actually said we're at our best when we're physically overpowering and making a premier league style they couldn't live with our pace do you worry about that style having a limitation on actually winning major tournaments the problem with that i agree with it because man united and i take it back to what how we played in the champions league we always thought if we make it a a fight and about about physicality and we get up against teams and Even against Arsenal, we used to do that.

25:00They won't be able to live with us for 90 minutes at this pace. That's okay in the season. When you've done that all year at your different clubs and then you go into a tournament, the fatigue sets in. Tournament football finds where the lactic acid is. It takes everything out of you. So to think that you're going to play like that in a condensed amount of time, quick turnaround between games, and to play at that speed and that level required to overrun and overpower teams who have the best players out of their country as well, who are technically gifted, who know how to play, who have a philosophy, who have basic fundamentals to nullify what you're trying to do.

25:41I don't know if England can go and do that. I think we can add parts of that and turn that on and off in a tournament, but you can't play full pelt for 90 minutes like that because I don't think physically you're capable. Everyone's tired going into a tournament. Then the teams that normally do well, or the teams that keep, Spain have been the most dominant over the last few tournaments. They're the best at keeping the ball. They probably don't run as much as everybody else out of possession. I mean, for a whole game, because they've got the ball so much. When England can't rely, because you have to have a couple of ways to skin a cat.

26:12You have to have a few ways to win a football match. You can't just go, but the best teams can normally fight and run with you, but they can also play you off the pitch. Or they can go out and gunsling and beat you 5-4, right? They could probably do three or four different things. England have to find a way that if they're going to play the English way, which is running and physicality and being physically dominant in the game, like they showed the other day, with some bits of glass, can they then be a team that can, against the top eight teams in the world, still take the ball off them and keep the ball and suffocate them without the ball and play a high line and a high press game in the opponent's half, pen them back with possession around their box for long periods.

26:55Can they bring that? If they can add elements and different ways of winning a football match as well as the physicality then England have a chance. Then they become a different proposition. But right now I don't know if they can do what I just mentioned there as well as being the physicality team and the English all gunslinging type. I think that's a question for our England neutral on the show. Steve, do you reckon England can do that? I think Rio makes a really good point. I've never actually really thought about that Premier League style, which has been extremely effective in a Champions League.

27:32Can you replicate that at a tournament? I think you probably can if you utilize the depth of the squad, probably a little bit better, because there is depth in the squad there. But no one's managed to find the way of doing that. And I also think that one thing that lets England down, and the Nations League was actually meant to be something that was a remedy for this. Qualifying is a fucking joke. Us three, right? I know Rio's probably a little bit better than us two, but us three could probably turn out for England in qualifying and not really fuck up most results because they play summer. Can we just insert Steve kicking a ball in the villa, in the hills, in the Beverly Hills this summer, please?

28:14Oh, come on, Steve. all those comments about players no one does kick-ups in international football Rio thank you I think that international football is so easy for England in qualification the one thing that makes the Premier League probably as successful as it is in European football is that every single week you're being asked questions every single week you're coming up against difficult teams every single week you're coming up against having to find a way so when you get to international football and you know England most of the time nine times out of ten I mean even in World Cups it's only literally the game that they lose where they've been put under pressure really most of the time it's been easy for them in all of the games until the one that they lose what does that tell you?

29:02so I think that is it possible to win by playing that intense Premier League style of football logically it feels like it is probably requires a utilisation of the squad that we haven't really seen any of the managers do. They seem to have their favourite 11 and they go, right, that's that, and crack on. Or they do what managers have done for seemingly the last 25 years, which is pick the biggest names and just roll with that rather than going, okay, this asks a slightly different question. Let's give a slightly different answer. Yeah, I think it's doable, but it requires probably someone being a bit brave and trying to book friendlies that you ain't going to win.

29:42Zidane took charge of his first match as a France manager. Obviously, he had a second one against Italy as well, but the first one was against Belgium. But did you see him, right, run down that touchline after Elise banged in the wonder goal as a late, late winner? Did you see it? Yeah, unreal. That's what you want to see from your manager. Passion. Yeah. Have you seen the clips as well of him obviously playing with Elise and playing with the boys in training? Like, there's just awe when he touches the ball and it's going viral. But this one's more about Elise and Jamal. Rio, who would you have in your team right now out of the two?

30:17Lise banging in the winners or Lamin-Yamal doing what he does? He's got 11 goal involvements in seven league games this season. Have you seen the clip on him? Have you seen the clip in training the other day? He was running for the players. Running for the players. He ain't even got his power yet, but he started doing that. But imagine when he gets powerful. And when he starts moving into the number 10 spot, because that's where he's going to end up. He ain't going to be a right winger for the rest of his career. Bit like Messi in that sense. Protecting him, playing him right wing. When he's physically capable enough to ride tackles and to ride challenges in that central area, he's going to be murderous.

30:55He's going to take liberties. And Alise, man. Did anyone see this at Palace, this level? Quinton Fortune said to me, Rio, he was at Reading and he had Eze and Alise. there and I remember asking him like when they both left and went to Palace and that, when he was there, who they say is the best? And he was like, Rio, Alise man, Alise. No, I don't what Alise is doing now, man I don't know if anyone saw this but he has gone to levels above anyone I think imagined he was going to get to. He's been phenomenal. I'm angry at the fact that even if you look at my club Arsenal what were we playing at? He was available.

31:39You had Saka, so you didn't really you weren't interested we still could have looked on the left hand side we could have done something man i just don't know how you slip you let that kind of talent slip through your fingers i'm sorry i agree no but anyway rio your mate's been on the news it's been a big one um you've been very vocal with your support as usual uh you know what i'm not gonna lie the way you ride for cristiano you've taught me a lesson man you that's how you ride for your peoples even when you were bigging up Messi. You were bigging up Messi. I saw on the Rio Presents Instagram platform.

32:15They're not having it. They're saying, just say he's the best Rio. Stop trying to protect Ronaldo. Just say Messi's the best, even though you're giving him flowers. You can't win in this game. You can't win in this game, can you? You say good stuff about one and you hate the other, etc. What do you think when you see that on socials before we go into the Ronaldo situation? No, it makes me laugh. It's funny, man. Listen, I love football. Anyone who sees what we do here and who've seen me around games and that knows that I've just got a genuine love for football. So when I see talent or I see bits of skill, whatever, don't care who does it.

32:48Just because I'm mates with Cristiano, yeah, don't mean I'm not going to enjoy and embrace Messi. And when he does some crazy stuff, I love it. I want to see more. Like, so, no, it's nothing to me. Listen, the fans are going to chat in it. This is part of the game we're in. Do you know what I mean? But I just feel the way this situation now with the Portugal national team, I think is it's not nice to see. I think no player should have to go out from their international career the way that it seems is happening right now. I think they'll rekindle it because I think after a bit of sleep and a bit of time away from each other, I think that the national team and the president of the National Federation will realise the way that they've handled it and the manager has been poor because there's no way that you should be letting your best product, your best ambassador, the most iconic guy that your country's ever had or ever going to see kind of have to be in a position where he's got to walk away from the national team at any point and I think people will say oh why has he walked away etc none of us know what's going on behind behind the scenes but I do know one thing is Cristiano's a man of principles and he stands on what he believes and I think if he feels he's been done wrong in a situation or something hasn't played out the way it might have been agreed then he's not going to accept that and I respect that.

34:09There's a lot of people that would accept it and cower away from it. He knows his value. He knows his worth. And I saw something the other day. Cristiano doesn't just bring goals. He brings attention to Portugal. He don't just bring assists and goals. He brings a following to Portugal and their national team. These people never heard of Portugal before, most of them. And they're selling shirts for Portugal in parts of the world that don't even know where Portugal is because of Cristiano Ronaldo. So there has to be sometimes, I think there's, certain players are treated differently. Do you know what I mean?

34:46Beckham was treated differently with England, right? Cristiano is treated differently with Portugal. Messi with Argentina. Arnaud with Brazil, there's certain guys who demand a different type of treatment, right? But there needs to be a level of respect. And I think that the only way Cristiano walks out away from that situation is because he feels disrespected. He has an ego, right? So if he feels that is being disrespected as well, he's going to react. And you don't get to be who he is or these players that we've just named without an ego. So you can't sit there and go, is his ego just, well, the ego got him to where he is.

35:23So you can't have it one and not the other. You've got to have it at all times. Did you hear Bruno Fernandes' quote, Rio? He actually, he said, what I told him is that the most important thing, regardless of what happens, is that he will never cease to be the greatest symbol of our national team and country. Now, Cristiano would have told him that. Trust me. He would have told him that and he told everyone else that. That is facts.

35:51You know what's crazy as well? Portugal, they've lost over 2 million followers on their Instagram account since Ronaldo walked away. Yeah, and if they carry on, it'll be 10 million tomorrow. And the coach has been getting booed. Even after winning the last two games, every time he walks out the fans are booing him I've never seen anything like it the coach needs to come out and apologise or he's getting a tic-tac trust me I think he has to come out and say listen I've judged this situation wrong I'm telling you something's gone on I'm sure I'm sure something's happened where I don't know when you look between the lines like I see the president's come out and like they've done that Cristiano's the best and he's this greatest he's this and that and the other they're trying to they're trying to settle the situation they're panicking behind the scenes now you can't just keep picking him forever though surely he has to contribute on the pitch and if the manager that's picking the 11 doesn't think he's doing that then surely that's his prerogative to pick the team that he thinks he's going to do that did he score in the last game he started but if he's that's this I'm just asking mate you know better than that just a question mate did you hear Fred's interview did you guys hear Fred's interview that was really interesting he was talking about how when he clashed with Eric and hug and he said it in short he goes eric wanted him to run more and he did it whatever it was yeah it just made me feel like there was a lot going on is is why is he not being picked the way he is is it an age thing is it because he felt like he was winning the game and he didn't need to bring him on do you know what can i can i just say i think this situation doesn't play out the way it has if there is good communication skills i don't i think there's been terrible communication skills.

37:31I said this during the World Cup with Roberto Martinez and I think the same with this manager now. You have to sit with Cristiano Ronaldo and tell him, this is what I want to do. And if you don't want to be a part of it, then just tell me. But this is how I want it to work. That conversation, I don't believe has been had. Because I don't think you'd be here with Cristiano going mid-camp, walking out like that. I think you've got to go. And if you're a manager, you're getting paid to make the best team possible, right? And we can talk about, Cristiano's and I, Connolly he's the biggest name they've ever had he's a talisman and he's going to be a member for history but if you as a manager in your heart of hearts field at Cristiano listen you need to start on the bench because I still think you can impact the game he's still scoring goals at national level by the way he still has a role to play I think right now the question is is that to start or is that to come on an impact games or to start some sub some that's the conversation that needs to be had and then stick by it if that happens man he's his ego isn't that big that he wouldn't sit and have that conversation and go, do you know what?

38:29I don't agree with it. Because I want to play for my country, I'll have to accept it. That's how I think it needs to be. But these managers, you're paid to manage your team, but you're also paid to manage people. You know what, Rio? This is the first, like, not the first time, but I actually am with CR7 on this one. Just to finish off, I saw that you reposted Paul Scholes' comment about the Man City titles. Like, you and him won your medals. Even Even though most players like Rooney said that they don't want them, they don't deserve it. I don't know if that's Rooney being modest or not, but I stand with you guys.

39:05If someone wants to cheat and get the top, give me my medals now. Thank you, sir. Joe, Joe. Over here. Waza is chatting shit. Yeah. Right? He will take that medal in a heartbeat. Trust me. If that medal came and someone delivered it to his house and said, Gwain, this is the one that you should have won when they scored that goal last minute of Aguero. Here it is. Do you think he's going to spin that man round on his drive and say, get out of here, I don't want it? In that long drive. He'll be in the cabinet, bro. That's what I'm saying. Scolzi's right. Just be honest about this, guys. We'll take the medals.

39:37Anyone gives you a medal that you should have because the other team have cheated, you take it and you even wrap it around their head and give them a snap. Boom, take that and get out. This is what happens, man. Are we having a night out if we get to go and pick up another medal? I'm going to organise a night out in Manchester. I'm going to go to one old dead pub with loads of bubblegum on the, on the, on the, on the floor. Right. And underneath the table where your, the hands go and your knees go. Right. And just have, just sink 10 pints each like we used to back in the day, because we won't get the medal.

40:07Right. I'd take it, but I know they ain't going to give us the medal. So we'll go out, no trophy, no medal, but we'll go out and we'll enjoy it. Like we want it. Finally. I'll get you some of them primary school sports day ones and we'll dish them out. Oh mate, serious. And a little one. The worse they look, the better, the more chip shop, the more plastic the better because I think that makes it funnier do you know where that sits as well that one goes in prime position in my trophy cabinet the wording from the Premier League was so monumentally strong the sanctions have to match surely yeah yeah I think so if they're found guilty then and listen it's not the players I keep saying this it's not the players the people that have obviously made the decisions at the top, whoever they are, then the club needs to be punished accordingly.

40:58And they've ruined a certain period of time in the Premier League if they've cheated. And that has to be looked at and the penalties have to replicate. I don't think you need to say if anymore, Rio. They've been found guilty. Yeah, but there's always an appeal process that goes through, so... Yeah, but have you seen what their appeal is resting on? What's it resting on? Their appeal is resting on the fact that they said they applied for government assistance and the government topped up their sponsorship. But they gave testimony in America in 2015 where they was asked explicitly if the government had topped up Etihad's payments to Manchester City.

41:34And they was like, absolutely not. And any suggestion of that is absolutely ridiculous. And they've been found guilty 114 times. So I think if that's what their appeal is, I think the appeal just holds up that statement and points at it and goes, don't let the door hit you in the arse on the way out. the sanctions are in the post. Just another thing. If we get awarded the Premier League title on the back of a guilty finding in court, I need to speak to Mr. David Gill about my win bonus. Hmm. Really interesting conversation. I want my win bonus. Trust me. Listen, make sure you keep on following us across socials.

42:18Rio Ferdinand presents it is heating up ooh the Nigeria top guys that's a classic top right there listen make sure you're following us across socials we will be back just to let you know sorry Joel the Rio meets series we've got some absolute like wild ones coming crazy crazy like crazy crazy players who don't speak a lot really wow the biggest names come here that's it full stop internationally not just in the country internationally we're not local we're not local international baby passports everywhere I love that I love that passport gang alright listen Joel Baer Stephen Housen Rio Ferdinand signing out we will be back next week as Arsenal are top of the league peace let's go why are you finishing like that for?

43:10I gotta go love you guys take care bro thanks a lot in a bit peace

43:18Thank you.