FOOTY-MAD Prince William says he would injure himself trying to recreate Cristiano Ronaldo’s famous celebration in a kickaround in his back garden.
Wills, 42, had a ball while selecting attributes for his “perfect footballer” during a laughter-filled quickfire Q&A on The Beautiful Game, with The Sun.
He was left scratching his head when faced with the ultimate football question that has divided fans across the globe: Messi or Ronaldo?
And he had a hard time choosing between Three Lions pal David Beckham and France legend Zinedine Zidane in a light-hearted but high-pressure game.
Some of his selections – such as selecting Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger’s intelligence and Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven for pace – for his ‘Perfect Footballer’ will no doubt spark debate with fellow football fans.
Despite being an avid Aston Villa fan – who was pictured cheering on from the stands as they reached the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday night – no Villans made his list.
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He was handed the tricky questions in a fun face-off with pal and Aston Villa defender Tyrone Mings at the club’s Bodymoor Heath training ground, exclusively for The Sun.
And the prince gave away a hint of footy kickabouts in the back garden in the shadow of Windsor Castle when choosing Ronaldo’s Siu routine as the celebration for his ideal fantasy footballer.
He said: “Well the most iconic I guess is Cristiano Ronaldo’s.”
Mings cheekly asked: “Have you recreated it a few times in the garden?”
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The prince replied while laughing: “Well, obviously!” and added while reaching down to his hamstring: “And then I do a hammy.”
But the footy-mad prince impressed Villa star Mings with his breadth of football knowledge as he explained his choices for each part of his perfect player.
Then, faced with the viral ‘Football Legends – Head 2 Head’ game the future King faced some tricky calls and was left with a series of tricky choices to make.
He struggled to choose in a shoot-out between Zidane and Golden Balls Beckham – who joined the prince celebrating Air Ambulance heroes last October.
William grimaced and said: “This gonna hurt. Becks, I think, just.”
But there was no hesitation when choosing Brazilian Ronaldo, or R9, over the former England and Man United winger.
Although he found deciding between retired Ronaldo and Messi much more difficult.
He said: “These are really tricky ones.. Messi.”
Then faced with the final head-to-head between Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo he agonised before choosing the Argentine goal-getter.
Wills justified his selection saying: “Gotta go Messi, just.”
The Cristiano v Messi debate divides football fans around the world with both players dominating the Ballon d’Or for almost two decades
Messi won the gong on eight occasions between 2009 and 2023 while Cristiano bagged five since 2008 – but holds the record of being nominated in 18 seasons.
The future King regularly played football while at Eton.
And two years ago revealed he often still lines up for a game of 11-a-side when his busy schedule allows.
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Prince William lined up alongside Prince George in a Christmas Eve football match between Sandringham estate workers and villagers.
He was “wiped out” in a tackle by England legend Jill Scott during a charity game in 2012.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
