(Sports Focus)Ronaldo on Olympics, Chinese market and world football trend

Popularly dubbed as "the phenomenon", retired Brazilian footballer Ronaldo is considered by experts and fans as one of the greatest football players of all time.

The three times FIFA World Player of the Year is now focusing on his football schools in Brazil, the U.S. and especially in China, as he will open 30 football schools in the Asian country. The move comes as Chinese government is pushing for the country to host the World Cup finals one day, attempts to reestablish the image of the sport at home after years of corruption in the past.

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua on May 19, Ronaldo explained the reason why he emphasized a lot on Chinese market. Besides, he also believed 100% that the Rio Olympics will be a success despite of any type of problems.

In regards of current world football, he reckoned that there are more mobility on the field, footballers like Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, move around more on both sides of the pitch and they score a lot of goals. However, as one of the greatest No.9 in world football, he is still looking forward to a return of traditional central strikers.

Following are the Q&A:

Xinhua: Tell us about your Ronaldo Academy project and its progress in China.

Ronaldo: Football doesn't have borders. The Chinese market is very important. It has the most football participants in the world so it's a market that interests us. Our project was very well received. We have already sold 30 academies in China and we want to sell a lot more franchises there. This goes along with China's President who has stated a desire to win an important trophy within 10 years. To develop football in China through the Ronaldo academy for me is a great opportunity to contribute to the Chinese people with our project.

Xinhua: Brazil beat China 4-0 during the group phase of the 2002 World Cup. How far has Chinese football come since then?

Ronaldo: Since then there has been a great improvement with great investments in Chinese football. In 2002 it was a relatively easy game however you could tell that they had a lot of physical quality and great possibility to develop. At that time I noticed that. Without doubt there are a lot of love for football in China and without doubt an immense desire to improve. That's where our experience and expertise comes into play, taking this project to China and I am certain that our contribution in China will be important. We want to take our methodology. We are conscious of the fact that this project could bring a lot of benefits to the Chinese people.

Xinhua: What do you think about the number of top Brazilian players going to Chinese clubs?

Ronaldo: China is making big investments to develop football in China. Brazilians are targets of clubs that want to grow. It's natural that Brazilian players, with their talent and experience, go to these countries to pass on their experience and help develop football in China. I think it is a great plan that has already delivered results. In the media we have been seeing these results. We see them through the competitions - Asian leagues and in the Chinese competition [Super League], with international players standing out. And it [the Super League] has broken new ground, showing that a Brazilian player in China can be called up to the national team. We've seen that happen with some players.

Xinhua: Neymar is the only real star in Brazil's current team. Do you think this reflects problems with Brazil's youth system?

Ronaldo: I think the Brazilian team has had problems of creating a new winning generation. We have great players with a lot of quality but together we haven't been able to develop a winning team. We had opportunities in the World Cup in Brazil in 2014 and the Copa America in Chile last year, but we still haven't been able to develop a winning group. It's not that we don't have great players. Neymar is our great hope in the Brazilian team. We hope that in the next few competitions, whether it be in the Copa America in the US or the Olympics in Brazil, Brazil can win a title.

Xinhua: What is your view on the top strikers in the game today? How are they different to when you were playing?

Ronaldo: We are seeing on the global scene a need for great central strikers, No. 9s. Those who have been successful recently have had more mobility ... they move around more on both sides of the pitch and they score a lot of goals. But on a global level we're seeing that there are few central strikers. The standout players are other types of players, like Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar. They are very mobile players that have the ability to score. But even so, we still have some great strikers like Robert Lewandowski, who is a classical centre forward, with great technique and strength. He is tall and scores a lot of goals. We hope that we see a return of these types of players.

Xinhua: Who are some of the current strikers that you like most?

Ronaldo: Lewandowski and Karim Benzema are two strikers that I like a lot.

Xinhua: Are there as many top players today as there were when you were playing?

Ronaldo: It's difficult to compare eras. The criteria isn't clear. It's a superficial comparison. But yes, I believe that our generation had greater competitiveness. Each club had two or three standout players. And we didn't see the same player repeatedly winning all of the [individual] awards. There was a great competition. To win the title of the world's best player I had to compete against [Zinedine] Zidane, [Luis] Figo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Michael Owen and other great players of my generation.

Xinhua: How is football different today than when you played?

Ronaldo: I think football has evolved a lot in a physical sense. Nowadays players train better, benefiting the individual qualities of each player. That's why football today is a lot more dynamic, quicker ... you don't find slow players. The speed of the game is what has changed most.

Xinhua: Rio de Janeiro has suffered several setbacks to its Olympic preparations this year. How do you think the Games will go?

Ronaldo: I think Rio will put on a great event. Preparations started a long time ago, years ago. There has been a big commitment from the local and federal governments to ensure the event will be successful. I believe 100% that there won't be any type of problem. Zika and the political situation won't affect this great event. Endit