For me Sir Alex was my father in football. He was crucial in my career and, outside football, was a great human being with me. Talent isn't everything. You can have it from the cradle, but it is necessary to learn the trade to be the best.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of mentorship and hard work in achieving greatness, beyond just natural talent.
Cristiano Ronaldo reflects on the significant impact Sir Alex Ferguson had on his career, highlighting that while talent is important, it must be complemented by learning and guidance to truly excel. This tribute underscores the value of leadership and the human qualities that contribute to personal and professional development.
In practice
During a motivational speech for young athletes, this quote can illustrate the importance of guidance and dedication.
There's no point in making predictions. It's not worth speculating because nothing is set in stone and things change all the time in football. Today there are opportunities that no one knows if they will come round again in the future.
Without football, my life is worth nothing.
After we played Sporting last week, the lads in the dressing room talked about him constantly, and on the plane back from the game they urged me to sign him. That's how highly they rated him.
Scoring goals is a great feeling, but the most important thing to me is that the team is successful - it doesn't matter who scores the goals as long as we're winning.
My father was always in good spirits, he loved football. It makes me a bit sad because if he could enjoy seeing me now, what I have achieved, that would be a highlight in his life. But I'm sure that he watches over me from above.
I feel endless need to LEARN, to IMPROVE, to EVOLVE, not only to please the coach and the fans, but also to feel SATISFIED with myself
I think the most important thing is to achieve what you set out to achieve. Just being a CEO in itself is not success. I would not relate success to a title or a position.
What you hear and what the research shows is that gentlemen negotiate for their first job. Women do not negotiate from their first job and on. And I tell women there is no H.R. fairy godmother. There might be, but you better not count on it.
The fame you earn has a different taste from the fame that is forced upon you
What I learned from that loss, and also another loss that I'm going to talk about later, was that when you're there, it's not good enough to be there, when you're there, you better walk away with that ring.
There is no hope of success for the person who does not have a central purpose, or definite goal at which to aim.
You have to be able to bounce back and deal with disappointment, failure and weaknesses, and a lot of that happens behind the scenes for teams that are very successful.
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