I tried playing like Ronaldo – Martins

Nigeria international Obafemi Martins has revealed that he tried very hard to develop his skill and play like Ronaldo de Lima during his early days in Italy. Martins, who started his professional football in Europe with Italy’s Serie C side Reggiana said in an interview with FIFA.com that he was so captivated by the touches of the Brazilian legend that he wanted to be like him.

He said, “I remember when I was a child in Nigeria, when I used to play in the street for fun I didn’t know any players, but when I came to Europe and I went to Italy, seeing Ronaldo — you know: Brazilian Ronaldo — playing, I was thinking ‘I want to play like him’.”

Even though the Nigerian never got to play alongside the Brazilian, he later had the opportunity to play for Inter Milan where he had the closest view of Ronaldo.

The Seattle Sounders attacker who is well known for his trademark backflips said the style was adopted on the streets of Lagos before he honed his football skills.

“I learnt to do the backflip in Nigeria because I was just doing it for fun, but all of a sudden I became really good at it.

“I was doing it with friends, and they told me, ‘Now you’re playing soccer. Why can’t you simply score goals and do the flip?’ They said, ‘Try it. It’s going to be fun. I think people will really love it.’ All of a sudden I started doing it, and now people love it.”

The former Newcastle attacker who last featured for the Super Eagles in a 2014 World Cup qualifying match against Kenya in March says he has found it quite a challenge playing in the American league.

“It’s a bit like England. The competition in MLS is strong and they’re physical as well. And the league is getting much better, and every team out there wants to win, so we have to be ready,” Martins added.

 “When I first came to Seattle I couldn’t believe the support they had.  They have a lot of fans. I’d rate Seattle’s fans at 99 per cent: They’re some of the best supporters I’ve had since I’ve been playing.

 “We want to win the trophy,” Martins said of the MLS team. That’s why it’s been difficult, winning a couple of games and then losing again. That’s what we’re waiting for, the trophy.

“We want to win. This is a big competition. (Our opponents) want to win; we want to win, so it’s going to be tough. We’ll see what will happen. It’s fun. It’s a fun game and a fun league.”