“I thought, ‘who’s this guy?’” - Peter Crouch names Portugal star who was ‘better’ than Cristiano Ronaldo during U21 game

Peter Crouch has said that Ricardo Quaresma impressed him more than Cristiano Ronaldo during a U21 game. The former England striker heaped praise on the duo and also expressed his pride in playing against some of the top players.

Cristiano Ronaldo is the leading goalscorer in men's international football with 141 goals and 45 assists in 224 games for Portugal. As per Transfermarkt, he made 10 appearances for their U21 side, scoring three goals and providing three assists. He also faced England U21 twice, with Portugal U21 winning on both occasions.

In an interview with Mirror, former Tottenham Hotspur striker Peter Crouch recalled one of his matches with England U21 against Portugal U21. He said:

"I played against Cristiano Ronaldo when he was kind of unknown, with the England Under-21s against Portugal Under-21s. [It was] him and Quaresma on the wing, and that was - because we didn’t know anything about them… we had J’Lloyd Samuel and Paul Konchesky as full-backs and I was saying 'J, get tight, what’s the matter with you, you’re getting ripped!' but little did we know it was Quaresma and Ronaldo." "In all honesty I felt [Quaresma] was slightly better at that time, but what Ronaldo has gone on to achieve… I remember Quaresma played a 60, 70 yard pass, Ronaldo was controlling it on his back and then just going at the full-back, and I thought ‘Who’s this guy?’," he added.

Quaresma made 79 appearances for the Portugal national side, contributing 10 goals and providing 24 assists.

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When Peter Crouch criticized people who picked Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi

In a podcast on his YouTube channel in 2022, Peter Crouch shared his thoughts on the GOAT debate between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The two superstars are widely regarded as the two greatest football players of all time. Many fans, pundits, and players have also made their picks.

However, in an episode on his podcast with Jermain Defoe, Crouch said that he looks down upon people who pick Ronaldo. He said:

"I don't know if I should say this or not. I feel if you say Ronaldo, you don't know football very well." "I think Ronaldo is incredible - incredible - but I do look a little bit down on you if you say Ronaldo," he added.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Peter Crouch faced off nine times at the club level, with Ronaldo's teams registering seven wins, one draw, and one defeat. Crouch's only win against Ronaldo came in the FA Cup in the 2005-06 season, where he scored for Liverpool in a 1-0 win over Manchester United.

Edited by Aditya Singh