‘Even as a kid, Cristiano lived football with enormous passion – if he didn’t win or things didn’t go well, he’d cry’ Nani on what it was like to grow up with Cristiano Ronaldo

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The future Manchester United pair played together at Sporting’s academy as youngsters

Nani and Ronaldo played together for club and country

Before the quest for 1,000 goals, the five Ballons d’Or and the seemingly never-ending roll calls of team and individual hours, the young Cristiano Ronaldo was just one of countless hopefuls chasing a dream.

As the Portuguese icon worked his way up through the Sporting youth system, there were, however, clues as to what was going to come.

Nani on rising through the ranks alongside Ronaldo

Nani in action for Manchester United, August 2008

Nani joined Manchester United in 2007 (Image credit: Alamy)

Nani’s path was not the most straightforward one, as at the age of 16 he trained at both Sporting and Benfica, before opting to choose the former.

“Yes, it was quite an unusual situation, training with Benfica and Sporting at the same time,” Nani recalls to FourFourTwo. “Later, both clubs invited me to do pre-season, and at first I said yes to both. It was crazy.

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“In the end, I chose Sporting because I had a friend there – and, to be honest, it was also the club I liked the most.”

That meant Nani would play alongside Ronaldo at the Sporting academy - so was the youngster destined for greatness at that young age?

“At the time we didn’t think about any of that, we simply played and enjoyed ourselves,” he continues.

“We had the ambition and the dream that one day we might become professional footballers, but we also knew that, until you actually get there, it’s little more than an illusion.

“In the end, everything happened very fast – opportunities came and we didn’t let them slip away. That spirit of sacrifice we had at such a young age was key.”

Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo during his time at Sporting

Despite this, some of Ronaldo’s traits were there at an early age.

"Even as a kid, he already stood out above everyone else,” Nani adds. “He knew exactly what he wanted. Cristiano lived football with enormous passion – if he didn’t win or things didn’t go well, he’d cry.

“That showed just how committed he was and the intensity with which he lived the game.”

Joe Mewis
Joe Mewis

For more than a decade, Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor. Mewis has had stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others and worked at FourFourTwo throughout Euro 2024, reporting on the tournament. In addition to his journalist work, Mewis is also the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team. Now working as a digital marketing coordinator at Harrogate Town, too, Mewis counts some of his best career moments as being in the iconic Spygate press conference under Marcelo Bielsa and seeing his beloved Leeds lift the Championship trophy during lockdown.

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