Dong Bortey: Ronaldo is a kid, compare my free-kicks to Beckham, Juninho

The former Hearts of Oak forward said his free-kick prowess should rather be compared to masters like David Beckham, Juninho and Ronaldinho.

Dong Bortey said this when he was asked who the better free-kick is between himself and Ronaldo. The 41-year-old noted that his era and that of Ronaldo are different but backed himself to be the better set-piece taker.

Bernard Dong Bortey Pulse Ghana

“Ronaldo must sit aside first. You should’ve mentioned Ronaldinho, Beckham, Pirlo, Riquelme and one Mexico defender who played for Barcelona. You have also not mentioned Juninho from Brazil and you’re mentioning Ronaldo,” he told Mothers FM.

“Ronaldo is far behind. I played during the era of Juninho and Beckham and Ronaldo was a kid back then. He wasn’t even a starter then. So compare me to the Juninhos, Ronaldinhos and Roberto Carlos. Those are the ones you should be mentioning. Ronaldo is a kid.

“If our era were today, I would be the best in the world, but I am grateful to God for bringing me this far. The name Dong Borety will last forever.”

Dong Bortey started his career with Ghapoha Readers, before crossing carpets to Hearts of Oak, where he became a cult hero in the 2000s.

He won four Ghana Premier League titles with the Phobians, as well as the CAF Super Cup and CAF Confederations Cup.

He was also joint top-scorer in the league in 2003 after netting 18 goals and was part of the Black Starlets side that won bronze at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Cup.

However, he didn’t have a successful career with the national team and was capped just seven times despite his great reputation on the local scene.