Cristiano Ronaldo named his best XI of teammates from his career – no Ozil or Tevez

• Cristiano Ronaldo has had an extraordinary career, playing with some of the best players in the world during his time at Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus.
• Ronaldo selected his best XI from teammates he had played with in an interview in 2023, with Real Madrid players such as Sergio Ramos and Iker Casillas dominating the team.
• Three Manchester United players were selected by Ronaldo, while Giorgio Chiellini was the sole player from Juventus chose by the Portugal star.

Cristiano Ronaldo is undoubtedly one of the greatest players to ever grace a football pitch. Having shone for the likes of Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus, he has broken numerous records and solidified his status as one of the ‘GOAT’s’ of the game.

But who are the 39-year-old’s greatest teammates? Well, the legend himself gave his opinion on the matter just last year in an interview with Goal Arabia, via Planet Football. Given the amount of incredible teams he played for, Ronaldo had a plethora of incredible talent to whittle down to.

Here at GIVEMESPORT, we are going to take you through the XI the Portuguese superstar named and take a look back at the time they spent together as teammates. With some big-name players such as Ryan Giggs, Mesut Ozil and Carlos Tevez missing out, this still might be the greatest team that could ever be assembled.

Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas

Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid

Ronaldo’s decision to opt for Casillas as goalkeeper, even with the notable exclusions of Edwin van der Sar, Keylor Navas, and Gianluigi Buffon, is entirely reasonable. Having spent six years alongside the Spanish goalkeeper at Real Madrid, Ronaldo and Casillas clinched seven trophies together, solidifying CR7’s decision to choose his former captain between the sticks.

Casillas is unquestionably regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers in the history of the sport. Having won all that there is to win in the game, there is nothing the Spaniard didn’t experience in his star-studded career. You could hardly ask for a safer pair of hands in goal.

Right Back: Sergio Ramos

Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid

Despite plying his trade in the middle of defence while playing alongside Ronaldo, Sergio Ramos does have history at right back, starting his career there. So, while it may seem strange, his versatility makes it a sensible decision and allows for other quality players to play centrally.

We all know about the Spanish defender’s wild side and obsessive mentality. Like Ronaldo, he will stop at nothing to win, he’s just willing to bend the rules a little bit more. However, don’t let that take away from the fact that the now 37-year-old was arguably the best at the back for the last decade. He also had a knack of coming up clutch when needed, with the equalising goal in the 2014 Champions League final springing to mind.

Centre Back: Rio Ferdinand

Played with Ronaldo at Manchester United

The first of just four players on this list not to have played for Los Blancos, Ferdinand was around when Ronaldo first broke through at Manchester United. He spoke of the harsh treatment the winger received upon his arrival.

“His mindset when he came to the club was I’m here to entertain people. He loved it. He used to get snapped in training. People would kick the hell out of him.

“Some kids at that age would’ve gone under. Whereas Cristiano’s intelligence was a key factor in that.”

That mindset saw Ronaldo drive Manchester United to multiple league titles and his first Champions League in 2008, with Ferdinand also being an integral part of that incredible group.

Centre Back: Giorgio Chiellini

Played with Ronaldo at Juventus

The Italian stallion Giorgio Chiellini is not long retired from football, but he is already truly missed. In his prime, the no-nonsense defender was one of the toughest men in the sport, with a sporting IQ to match his teanacious efforts.

The former European Championship winner is the only man on this list to have been alongside Ronaldo at Juventus, a period where the marksman’s career began to show its earliest signs of decline. While many hoped that they would be able to collect the Champions League that the likes of Chiellini and Buffon had come agonzingly close to, it wasn’t meant to be.

Left Back: Marcelo

Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid

Marcelo shared a profound connection with CR7, extending beyond the confines of the pitch. Their partnership at Real Madrid was undeniably potent, showcasing their formidable synergy on and off the field. It’s unsurprising that Marcelo earns a spot in this XI for that reason alone.

The Brazilian is one of the most successful players to have played the game, with an astonishing 27 trophies in his senior career. It can be argued that no one had a better seat in the house to watch Ronaldo in his prime than the 35-year-old who stood directly behind the number 7 during the peak years of his career.

Central Midfield: Toni Kroos

Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid

This may seem hard to fathom, but Toni Kroos and Cristiano Ronaldo only spent four years together at the Santiago Bernabeu. If it feels like longer, it’s probably down to the fact that the pair won an astonishing amount together in that near half a decade time span.

Between 2014 and 2018, the German was an instrumental figure in helping Zinedine Zidane’s men lift three consecutive Champions League titles, taking Ronaldo’s grand total to five. As incredible as the 34-year-old midfielder was, he wasn’t the only one to take credit for manning the engine room so diligently.

Central Midfield: Luka Modric

Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid

One of two Ballon d’Or winners that Ronaldo has picked in his team, the Croatian playmaker is actually the man who dethroned Ronaldo back in 2018, preventing the Portuguese star from winning three straight player of the year awards.

While we’re sure Ronaldo is still unhappy about that six years later, it has not prevented him from acknowledging the former Spurs player as one of the very best midfielders of his generation. It arguably caps off an incredible turnaround for the 38-year-old, who was once voted as the worst signing in La Liga.

Central Midfield: Paul Scholes

Played with Ronaldo at Manchester United

The man that was affectionately known as ‘GPS’ due to his incredible passing range and accuracy, Paul Scholes is a modern day Premier League great worthy of making any XI. As a result, it’s the Englishman who breaks up the dominant midfield of Kroos, Modric and Casemiro, with the latter taking a back seat.

Likely being one of the men Rio Ferdinand mentioned that would kick lumps out of Ronaldo in training, Scholes watched Ronaldo develop from boy to man in the north-west of England. Their crowning moment together no doubt came in the 2008 Champions League victory against Chelsea.

Right Wing: Gareth Bale

Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid

In 2013, the transfer of the Welsh winger to Real Madrid marked a significant moment, breaking Ronaldo’s record transfer fee. Bale’s acquisition injected new energy into the team, forming a formidable attacking duo with Ronaldo. With Bale on one flank and Ronaldo on the other, Real Madrid became an unstoppable force, terrorising opponents with their pace and skill.

Despite the former Tottenham man’s initial struggles to adapt to Spanish football, Ronaldo was one of his most vocal supporters and the two managed to form a Batman and Robin partnership, with help from another familiar name. This display of camaraderie highlighted the strong bond between the two players and demonstrated Ronaldo’s leadership both on and off the pitch.

Striker: Karim Benzema

Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid

There were a couple of other notable additions to the Real Madrid squad the year that Cristiano Ronaldo arrived. One was Kaka, who broke the transfer record earlier in the window. The other was Karim Benzema. The Frenchman was still a promising young striker who very quickly settled into his role as CR7’s servant.

Benzema was unselfish in allowing Ronaldo to flourish, and when his time came to prove he could be the man at Madrid, he took it with both hands. He led a Ronaldo-less Los Blancos to their first Champions League title since his departure and was later awarded the Ballon d’Or for his efforts.

Left Wing: Wayne Rooney

Played with Ronaldo at Manchester United

The love-hate relationship between these two players is unlike any other in world football. Admittedly, most of the controversy comes from Ronaldo’s side. Whether it be ensuring Rooney was sent off in the 2006 World Cup quarter-final, or throwing a dig at the Englishman’s looks during his infamous interview with Piers Morgan.

No matter how they felt about one another, on the pitch they were dynamite. Their paths mirrored one another for most of their Manchester United careers, as they were the two biggest prospects in world football, along with Lionel Messi. Like Benzema, Rooney took a back seat, doing the dirty work so that Ronaldo could maximise his contributions to the team. In doing so, many believe Rooney sacrificed becoming the player that his former teammate would turn out to be, although he would still go on to become one of the best strikers the Premier League has ever seen.