Cristiano Ronaldo warms the hearts of all the Portuguese fans as he sends a heartfelt message to his youth coach, Aurelio Pereira. The Al-Nassr superstar congratulated Pereira, who was honored at a Portuguese award gala for his contributions.
The former Chief Scout of Sporting Lisbon was honored for his services to Portuguese soccer. Pereira spent 31 years as the Chief Scout of the under-19 team of Sporting Lisbon. During his career, he discovered many talents for the Portuguese club, and among those, Cristiano Ronaldo was the crown jewel.
Ronaldo was among many who sent their well wishes to Pereira for this accolade. The Al-Nassr superstar said in a video message: “I am very happy that Mr. Aurélio received this honor. It is well deserved. As you know, it was very important in our training, not only for me but for many of my teammates. As everyone knows, Mr. Aurélio has a different eye than everyone else and he always had an aptitude for seeing the stars and helping“.
🚨Ronaldo on Aurelio Pereira (The coach who discovered CR7)
“As Mr. Aurelio knows, It was very important that he trained me. He has always had the ability to see the stars. I know you are in excellent condition, I hope you can continues for many years.”
— CristianoXtra (@CristianoXtra_) November 21, 2023
Ronaldo concluded by stating: “He makes me extremely happy. I know he’s in excellent shape. He’s already better and I hope he can last for many, many years. It’s a pleasure for me to send him this message. I hope you can enjoy this evening. A big hug, friend”.
Aurelio Pereira has been a strong pillar of Portuguese soccer for more than three decades. The Chief Scout finally got his flowers through this latest accolade and these comments from Cristiano Ronaldo. The response from the fans was also positive, as the majority applauded Ronaldo for these heartfelt comments about an important figure in his soccer journey.
Aurelio Pereira discovered Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Figo, and Quaresma
Aurelio Pereira’s contribution to Sporting Lisbon and Portugal soccer becomes crystal clear when fans look at the players that have been scouted by him at the Portuguese club. Icons such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Figo, Quaresma, Paulo Futre, Simão Sabrosa, Nani, and many others joined Lisbon due to Pereira’s efforts.
Aurelio Pereira has been credited with playing a major role in Cristiano Ronaldo’s tenure at Sporting Lisbon. Ronaldo joined the youth academy of Sporting Lisbon in 1997 when he was only 12 years old. He made it to the first team in 2002, when he was 17 years old and played a single season with the first team before being snapped by Manchester United in 2003.
É o Sporting Clube de Portugal! 💚 pic.twitter.com/30MBbmCJWc
— Sporting CP Adeptos (@Sporting_CPAdep) November 20, 2023
Ronaldo played 31 matches for Lisbon and scored five goals and six assists in 1,391 minutes of action. His impressive debut season with the Portuguese club prompted Manchester United to pay $19 million when he was only 18 years old. Cristiano Ronaldo has been one of the biggest names in soccer, and due to his legacy, the name of Aurelio Pereira has been cemented in the history of this sport.