Cristiano Ronaldo Shares Unsurprising Secret Of His Soccer Success

Cristiano Ronaldo’s self-belief has taken him to unprecedented heights.

The Real Madrid and Portugal superstar revealed one of the secrets to his soccer success Monday in Lisbon at the Quinas de Oro award ceremony. Upon accepting his country’s player of the year for 2017, Ronaldo called on his compatriots and teammates to match his self-confidence in order to achieve glory at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

“We should always believe we are the best,” Ronaldo said, per Sky Sports. “You need to think big. I always believe that nobody is better than me, out on the pitch at least.

“On a personal and collective level I have had a dream year. I won five trophies (UEFA Champions League, UEFA Supercup, FIFA World Club Cup, the Spanish league title and the Spanish Supercup), the Ballon D’Or and the FIFA ‘Best’ title.”

Ronaldo has scored 79 goals in 147 games for Portugal during his international career, and he’ll captain his country at the World Cup, which Russia will host between mid-June and mid-July.

Whether Portugal triumphs at the World Cup, as it did at the 2016 UEFA European Championship, remains to be seen, but Ronaldo’s teammates might fare well by adopting his approach.