Crystal Palace midfielder, Eberechi Eze says watching former Brazilian international, Ronaldinho has impacted positively in his game.
Eze revealed this during an interview with Dailymail on his struggle and challenges while growing up as a footballer.
The youngster’s performances since rising to prominence at QPR suggest he has found the right balance while Palace have quickly witnessed his knack for scoring spectacular goals, with all three of his efforts so far in the special category.
However, Eze who stated that Ronaldinho played a significant impact on his career, also said that he never regretted choosing football as a career.
‘We would come home from school, go on the computer and just type in Ronaldinho,’ he said.
‘He’s a player I have watched pretty much every day from maybe the age of seven, eight, with my brothers on the computer watching YouTube videos and whatever he is doing.
‘The same videos over and over again on Ronaldinho and how he played.
‘There’s probably not a video of him you could show me that I haven’t seen before. Even now I type in Ronaldinho and watch him. That’s how much impact he’s had on me. He was an inspiration.’
‘Of course I don’t play the same as him or anything like that but it is just having that idea of “I want to enjoy myself.”
‘And while I’m enjoying myself, I’m positive I will be entertaining people as well while also being as effective as I can as a footballer for my team.
‘There are things, in terms of the way you’re brought up, the resilience you get from playing in the cage, from experiencing different things that it numbs the feeling of someone else’s opinion on you.
‘I play football because I have fun doing it and I’m so grateful I have got this as a job. That for me is the most important thing.
‘As long as I’m enjoying it, the stats and all that type of stuff will come as well.’
By Augustine Akhilomen
