BRAZILIAN LEGEND RONALDO has given a scathing assessment of Barcelona’s “very bad” treatment of Brazilians ahead of the January transfer window.
The striker spent a year at Camp Nou before leaving for Serie A side Inter in 1997 and does not have fond memories of his time there.
Neymar’s world-record €222 million departure in the summer for Champions League rivals Paris Saint-Germain stunned world football and Ronaldo claims his treatment there was reminiscent of his own negative experiences.
“I felt much happier and more connected to Real Madrid, despite having lived a great year in Barcelona,” Ronaldo told Esporte Interativo.
“In the end, my history with Barca was very bad, similar to the one Neymar had. Barcelona have always had issues with Brazilian players: Neymar, Romario, Ronaldinho and me. We were all treated badly by the club in the end, despite all our contributions and dedication.”
Ronaldo’s comments are particularly apt due to Barcelona’s known pursuit of Liverpool’s talented Brazilian playmaker Philippe Coutinho.
The Reds were resilient in rejecting Barca’s advances in the summer but are widely expected to be open to negotiation in 2018.
In terms of Brazilians already on Barca’s books, the Catalan club signed Coutinho’s international team-mate Paulinho in the summer and fellow midfielder Rafinha has been with the team since 2006.
