Soccer Ronaldo wants final honour


AC Milan's returning Brazilian star Ronaldo says he is determined to help his team win the Champions League this year so he can snatch the one major honour that has so far evaded him.

After recurring calf problems kept him out of the team for much of the first half of the season, Ronaldo is finally back in the starting line-up this weekend for a Serie A match against Siena.

Later this month Milan will face English premiership leaders Arsenal in the first knockout round of the Champions League.

''A Champions League cup is missing from my trophy room, so I'm going to do everything I can to win it,'' said Ronaldo.

Milan won the Champions League title in 2007 but without Ronaldo who had only just joined the team. Despite performing well in the opening round of the Champions League, the star-studded squad coached by Carlo Ancelotti has been struggling in the domestic championship.

It is now in fifth place, 20 points behind cross-town rivals Inter, the current leaders. In order to be sure of a Champions League berth for next year's tournament, it needs to get into the fourth spot now occupied by Fiorentina, which has four more points than Milan.

''The championship began badly for various reasons and now we have to pull back a lot of points so it's important to win and score goals,'' Ronaldo said With fellow Brazilian strikers Pato and Kaka' injured, the team badly needs Ronaldo's former goal-scoring prowess to re-emerge now on both European and domestic fronts.

Ronaldo, who has won the World Cup with Brazil and been awarded FIFA's World Player of the Year award three times, has only played for Milan 14 times since being signed a year ago. He has scored seven goals.


from ansa.it

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