On Monday, the Premier League announced the induction of the former Arsenal and Chelsea standout as the inaugural member of the 2024 Premier League Hall of Fame. Following this honour, Cole disclosed that Cristiano Ronaldo, the esteemed Portuguese player, stands out as the most formidable adversary he has encountered throughout his career.

Cole depicted the Al-Nassr star as a versatile footballer and recounted how the former Manchester United winger swiftly adapted to the demands of English top-tier football upon his arrival as a young talent from Sporting CP. The English defender further asserted that facing the Portuguese maestro often proved to be a daunting task on the field.

Reflecting on Ronaldo, Cole remarked, “Over the years, Cristiano Ronaldo and I had some mighty battles and we have a mutual respect for each other. He came to the Premier League as a little bit of an unknown, but he soon understood what it took to be a top player. He was willing to learn and adapt. He wanted to be the best player in the world and became a machine.”

“He had everything. He could dribble, he could sprint behind, he could leap and jump and head a ball, he could go inside, he could go outside. So I say he always gave me nightmares, but you try to work each other out and we got the best of each other at times. Whenever I hear his name or see his face, I always think of when he made me do the splits! [in 2003/04, Ronaldo’s first Premier League season]”

The 39-year-old has rejoined the Portugal squad after sitting out the recent clash against Sweden. He is slated to feature in an international friendly against Slovenia on Tuesday.

A generational defender revered for his consistent excellence.

Ashley Cole is the first inductee of the 2024 #PLHallOfFame

💫 @TheRealAC3 pic.twitter.com/cE4TkuIt5P

— Premier League (@premierleague) March 25, 2024

Cristiano Ronaldo

This season he played in total 22 times for 1976 minutes for Pro League.

Cristiano Ronaldo  scored 22 goals for Al Nassr. He procured 9 assists. He received 1 yellow card and no red cards.

His team is currently 2nd in Pro League. In the last match Al Nassr won 1-0 against Al Ahli. The next match in Pro League will be against Al Tai.

Al Nassr performance and stats

Al Nassr is currently 2nd in the Pro League with 56 points.

In the last 24 games, it has won 18 times, drawn twice, and lost 4 times. In its last match, Al Nassr won 0-1 against Al Ahli.​​

It has a positive goal difference after scoring 66 goals and conceding 33.​

Al Nassr will play the next match in Pro League against Al Tai on Wednesday 3rd of April in Riyadh.​