Wink & a prayer
Cristiano Ronaldo admits he was scared to go back to England after wink at 2006 World Cup
The Juventus forward has opened up about the incident that took place in England's quarter-final defeat to Portugal
CRISTIANO RONALDO has revealed he was scared to return to England after his infamous wink in the World Cup quarter-final in 2006.
Wayne Rooney stamped on Ricardo Carvalho in the match and his Manchester United team-mate notoriously hounded the referee to send him off before winking at the Portugal bench.
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The Three Lions were subsequently knocked out on penalties and the Portuguese superstar became public enemy number one across the land.
But the five-time winner says he has no regrets for his actions - although he admits he was frightened to return to England.
Speaking to , he said: "The media created a big drama which never existed. So when I arrived back in England I was kind of afraid, not because of Rooney but because of England supporters.
"They made a huge story when I did the wink, but it was not because of the circumstances with Rooney, it was another situation.
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"It was difficult timing for me because I thought when I arrived in Manchester, people were going to boo me in all the stadiums.
"But it's the past, I had a chat with Rooney when I arrived back in Manchester. We are still friends, we speak about that and he understands my point of view.
"Of course, he helped me in all circumstances. He said, 'Cristiano, this is the past, let's speak about the present, let's win trophies together'."
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The Juventus marksman also said he would love the opportunity to play with his former team-mate Rooney again.
He said: "He's a fantastic lad, as you say in England. I always call him between me and my mates the pit bull. I remember when he lost the ball, he was so powerful. Strong guy, his shooting was unbelievable and he scored many goals.
"I miss him. The future, nobody knows, maybe we'll play one day together again."
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The duo of Ronaldo and Rooney has been widely hailed as one of best attacking partnerships in Premier League history.
And the five-time Champions League winner looks in the mood to create history again for the Old Lady following his multi-million pound move from Real Madrid in the summer.
He has scored seven goals in his opening ten games for the Italian giants, notching up four assists in the process.
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