Brazil’s Renato Gaucho, the former striker who won the Copa America with Brazil in 1989, claims he is better than Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo.

“When I say I’m a better player than Ronaldo, people think I’m crazy. A lot of people commenting on Brazilian football today have never seen me play,” Renato told ESPN.

Renato, nicknamed “King of Rio de Janeiro”, played professionally from 1980 to 1999. His mark was winning the Intercontinental Cup with Gremio in 1983, the top South American club tournament Copa Libertadores in 1983, or winning the Brazil Cup in 1987 and the Brazil Cup in 1990 with Flamengo.

His peak was helping Fluminense win the Rio de Janeiro State Championship Campeonato Carioca in 1995. At that time, he surpassed some of the greatest players in Brazilian history such as Romario (Flamengo), Tulio Maravilha (Botafogo), Valdir Bigode (Vasco) to win the best player award.

At club level, Renato scored 184 goals in 560 matches. At national team level, this former striker scored 5 goals in 41 matches, with the highlight being winning the Copa America with Brazil in 1989.

Renato hinted that Ronaldo would have found it difficult to achieve the same results if he had played in the same era as him. “I would love to see Ronaldo playing in the clubs I played for in Brazil, being owed wages and playing for weaker clubs, and still achieving what I have achieved,” the 62-year-old said. “I always had to prove myself, especially in the most difficult moments at club level. But I always tried my best, shining in important moments. That’s why I consider myself a better player than Ronaldo.”

Ronaldo once called himself the most complete player in history. The Portuguese star has won the Champions League five times, the Golden Ball five times and won Euro 2016 and Nations League 2019 with Portugal. The 40-year-old striker currently holds the record of 929 goals in 1,273 matches and has affirmed his goal of becoming the first player to reach 1,000 goals.

But Renato was not impressed, believing he could have achieved similar results if he had played for strong clubs with teammates of Ronaldo’s calibre. “Look at how these players play. Put me next to them and you will see the difference,” the former Brazilian said. “The difference is that Ronaldo plays with top players, with high salaries. Compare that to my time when things were difficult, with unpaid wages and fewer resources, but I still won many titles.”

Last month, another former Brazilian player, “Alien” Ronaldo Nazario, also admitted that he was better than Cristiano Ronaldo, but not as good as Lionel Messi.