Pretty Good
When Spanish football club Barcelona paid US$3 million for Ronaldinho last summer, they weren't buying a pretty face. "I am (1)," admits the Brazilian superstar (超级明星)."But everyone has got a different kind of beauty. What I __________(2) have is charm."
Indeed he has. His buck teeth (龅牙), flowing hair, big smile, and of course his __________(3) skills are always eye-catching on the pitch. The 23-year-old striker (中锋) scored two goals in a 3-2 win over Deportivo La Coruna on March 1. It was Barcelona's sixth win in a row and, thanks to their Brazilian's 10-goal contribution, __________(4) looked like a poor season could now end a success.
Ronaldinho - full name Ronaldo De Assis Moreira - is one of many South Americans who learned their skills playing in the backstreets before __________(5) them off on the world stage.
Great things were __________(6) when Gremio signed him as a seven-year-old, and he soon became friends with Ronaldo, who was then the other young star of Brazilian football. It was Ronaldo who first called him Ronaldinho, which __________(7) Little Ronaldo.
He first __________(8) for his country in 1999 but it was at the 2002 World Cup where he showed his real worth, scoring an unbelievable free-kick in Brazil's quarter-final victory __________(9) England.
"1 have never failed to deliver in big matches," Ronaldinho says. "My game is based on improvisation (即兴表演). Often a forward does not have the time to decide whether to shoot or __________(10). It is instinct that gives out the orders."
While he may not have David Beckham's good looks, Ronaldinho has a __________(11) reputation off the pitch. At former club Paris Saint Germain, which sold him to Barcelona, he broke __________(12) rules by going out and enjoying the city's nightlife.
Without doubt, Ronaldinho is the most __________(13) player I have ever come across," says former PSG coach Luis Ferdandez. "The main __________(14) for any coach is that one player without discipline can hurt the whole team."
But Ronaldinho doesn't think he has done anything wrong. "1 am just a young person who enjoys __________(15)," he says.
