The reason behind one of Cristiano Ronaldo’s superstitious habits that not many fans will have noticed has finally been revealed.
The Al-Nassr striker has shown no real sign of slowing down since his move to Saudi Arabia, as he scored the most goals out of anyone in world football with 54 goals in 59 games for club and country.
Ronaldo is well known as one of the most obsessive athletes in history, with tales of the Portuguese winger putting in hours of extra training at Carrington during his younger years by practicing skills with ankle weights.
The Portugal captain is also known to paint his toenails black to fight against potential infection.
Former teammate Patrice Evra has also recalled a time he went to Ronaldo’s house for dinner following training only to be pushed into even more training.
One habit of ‘CR7’s’ that fans may have not noticed over the years is how he enters the pitch each and every game.
Without fail, Ronaldo will always make sure to step on the pitch right foot first, due to a longstanding Portuguese tradition.
This is because in Portuguese culture there is a saying of “entra com a direita,” which means enter with the right.
While this is just as much a mark of respect to his roots as a superstition it is interesting to see top-level athletes adopt these kind of habits.
Cristiano Ronaldo- Getty
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner also has some other more noticeable habits unrelated to his physical performance. For example, many fans will have noticed Ronaldo always doing the same thing during team photos.
Dating back even before his original move to the Premier League, Ronaldo will always stand on his tiptoes during any pre-match photo in order to look taller.
The 39-year-old’s iconic free-kick stance is also something incredibly unique to his game.
