'CR7 made himself'

Sir Alex Ferguson believes he can take little credit for Cristiano Ronaldo's development into one of the finest footballers of all time.

Ferguson brought a teenage Ronaldo from Sporting to Manchester United in 2003 and oversaw his development to Ballon d'Or winner in 2008 before a then world-record move to Real Madrid a year later.

"Ronaldo is a perfect example of someone who made himself. It's easy for me to say, 'yeah, I made Ronaldo'," Ferguson said when he was honoured with the Walther Bensemann prize, which is awarded for outstanding work in football.

“Many coaches might say I made this player and I made that player, but Ronaldo made himself."