Football is Dying, Ben Arfa Slams ‘Predictable’ Ronaldo

Football is Dying, Ben Arfa Slams ‘Predictable’ Ronaldo

Hatem Ben Arfa may not be having the best of times at Paris Saint-Germain, but the talented forward is reveling in his role as the protagonist of the beautiful game, branding Cristiano Ronaldo ‘predictable’, and hitting out at Diego Simeone and Jose Mourinho for ‘killing football” with their styles.

In a recent interview with France Football, Ben Arfa bluntly stated that he does not enjoy watching Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo as he fails to be stirred by what the Portuguese offers on the pitch, Goal writes.

“Cristiano Ronaldo, he does not give me any emotion,” said Ben Arfa, who was once described as the best player in the world by France teammate Mamadou Sakho.

“He is predictable.”

He did not stop at Ronaldo, however, as he also took aim at Atletico Madrid coach Simeone and Manchester United boss Mourinho, both renowned for their defensive strategies.

“Many coaches are convinced to invent football on the pretext that they are looking for a system to block the opponent,” he said. “But this is not in the essence of football, with Mourinho and Simeone.

“It is the antithesis of [former Ajax and Barcelona coach Johan] Cruyff and his freedom, and with them there is no longer room for pleasure.

“There is no more spectacle, to the point that football interests me much less. I do not find pleasure watching matches. Even in Ligue 1, we kill football.”