Chelsea defender Ashley Cole has admitted that he misses the often titanic tussles with Cristiano Ronaldo.
The two wide-men's tussles on the flank were a feature whenever they squared up, both during Cole's latter days at Arsenal and after his controversial move to Chelsea in 2006.
Cole told the News of the World: "I miss playing against Cristiano Ronaldo, I really do.
"Manchester United don't seem the same without him - he's the best player in the world.
"I used to love our battles. If I'm concentrating, on my day I can do well against anyone, but he was something else.
"I love his skills, but I nearly ripped my groin when I was first playing against him because he did a trick and I did the splits.
"My mates were killing me after and I thought 'Right, he's never embarrassing me again'."
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The two wide-men's tussles on the flank were a feature whenever they squared up, both during Cole's latter days at Arsenal and after his controversial move to Chelsea in 2006.
Ronaldo has since moved on to Real Madrid, but his old nemesis retains fond memories of the battles and banter that passed between them over the years.
Cole told the News of the World: "I miss playing against Cristiano Ronaldo, I really do.
"Manchester United don't seem the same without him - he's the best player in the world.
"I used to love our battles. If I'm concentrating, on my day I can do well against anyone, but he was something else.
"I love his skills, but I nearly ripped my groin when I was first playing against him because he did a trick and I did the splits.
"My mates were killing me after and I thought 'Right, he's never embarrassing me again'."
Related links:
Team
Personal
Also see:
