Ronaldo cites Totti in emotional Ballon d'Or ceremony speech: "Our generation..."

Ronaldo presented the Ballon d'Or to Kane at the London ceremony and reflected on his generation's strength, citing Totti, Shevchenko, Figo and Henry.

At the Ballon d'Or ceremony at London's Palladium Theatre, Ronaldo presented the award to Harry Kane and spoke nostalgically about his era. When asked by Thierry Henry whether his generation or today's players were stronger, Ronaldo reflected: "I think our generation was incredibly strong. We had several Ballon d'Ors here. Shevchenko, Owens, Figo, you... but also Del Piero, Totti and many incredible players. It's nice to look back."

Ronaldo's mention of Francesco Totti highlighted the mutual respect between the two strikers. Totti has previously expressed his admiration for Ronaldo, telling Corriere dello Sport that he would have loved to play alongside him: "Ronaldo the Phenomenon has already scored 300, 400 goals, I don't remember how many, but I think with me behind him he would have scored triple. I think we would have played with our eyes closed, both of us."