Cristiano Ronaldo directly phoned a Brazilian duo to convince them to sign for Manchester United in 2007, as they continued to consider their options.
Though still only 21 at the time, Ronaldo – who ranked at no.4 in FourFourTwo‘s list of the greatest players of all time – had a great influence on Manchester United as he dominated in the Premier League and Champions League alongside his team-mates.
So, when Ronaldo heard that twins Rafael and Fabio da Silva were wanted by Manchester United, he did everything in his power to ensure the Brazilians chose Old Trafford as their next destination.
Cristiano Ronaldo helped Manchester United sign Brazilian duo
While playing for Fluminense at the 2005 Nike Premier Cup in Hong Kong, a Manchester United scout spotted the Da Silva twins, recommending Sir Alex Ferguson sign them despite them still only being in their mid-teens. Arsenal were also showing an interest, but Cristiano Ronaldo helped seal the deal.
“We were in the Fluminense youth team and took part in a tournament called the Nike Cup,” Rafael exclusively tells FourFourTwo. “That’s where United scouts discovered us.
“We were considering their offer when I got a phone call that I’ll never forget. It was on one of those old Nokia flip phones. This British number was calling – I answered it and it was Cristiano Ronaldo! I was only about 15 years old – it was crazy.
“He told me and Fabio that it only rained in Manchester but that it was great fun. It was him who convinced us to sign for United. Cristiano wanted us to go, so there’s no way we wouldn’t, right? We agreed to join once we turned 18.”
Indeed, without ever having played in the Fluminense first team, in February 2007 Manchester United agreed a deal to sign both Rafael and Fabio, though they were unable to play for the club until their 18th birthday in July 2008.
Ronaldo’s help also extended to when the twins were in Manchester, with the shared language helping settle them quickly.
“Sir Alex Ferguson is a good person and he helped us a lot,” Rafael adds. “He was a straight-talker and really demanding, but that’s good for younger lads. We knew where we stood – he was in charge!
“Cristiano looked after us too, as we could speak only Portuguese at the start. He was so friendly and funny, and played loads of practical jokes on us, but he also set an example to others. He trained harder than anyone and encouraged us to put our own extra work in. If you’re going to have a mate and role model, it may as well be one of the greatest players ever!”
