Obrigado, Ronaldo Fenômeno!

On Monday, as I'm sure you'll be aware, one of the greatest players of the modern game called time on his professional career. Ronaldo, the star of Brazil's 2002 World Cup triumph, announced that he would be unable to fulfill his contract with Corinthians due to his continuing fitness troubles.


Ronaldo has always been a player close to my heart, and one of my biggest regrets is that I never managed to see him in the flesh. The closest I came was a couple of years ago, when I went to see Corinthians at the Pacaembu, but unfortunately O Fenômeno was injured that day. Unperturbed, I spent a good ten minutes trying to locate him in the directors' box on the opposite side of the stadium, but to no avail; Ronaldo evaded me just like he had all those defenders over the years.

Although deeply saddened by the news of his retirement, I managed to pull myself together and write a tribute to Ronaldo for the lovely folks over at In Bed With Maradona. You can read the article here.