During their time at Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo became great friends, forming one of the most iconic duos in football. Together, they managed to win four Champions League titles, among many other trophies. However, their relationship did not start in the friendliest of ways. Before Cristiano signed with Real Madrid in the summer of 2009, they had a confrontation during a friendly match between Brazil and Portugal.

The incident between Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo in 2009

The incident occurred in November 2009, when Brazil defeated Portugal 6-2 in a friendly played in Gama, Brazil. With the score already in Brazil's favor, Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo had a heated dispute just minutes before the end of the match. The Portuguese forward, upset by a play, reacted violently and grabbed Marcelo by the neck.

In a recent interview on the Spanish program ‘La Revuelta,’ Marcelo recalled the tense moment with Cristiano: "My relationship with Cristiano started with a fight. In a Brazil-Portugal match, I hit him because he was going too fast. He overstepped, elbowed me, I responded with a kick, and then he grabbed me by the neck. I tried to react, but he was much taller, and I couldn't reach." This incident, which could have led to a tense relationship, ended up being the start of a great friendship.

Marcelo's surprise upon learning of Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer to Real Madrid

The curious part of this story is that, months after this confrontation, Marcelo found out that Cristiano Ronaldo was going to sign with Real Madrid: "I got the message that Madrid was going to sign him in two months. I thought, 'I'm leaving Madrid.' But in the end, everything turned out fine," Marcelo confessed. This signing, which seemed unthinkable at the time, turned out to be a turning point for the relationship between the two players.

Despite the great friendship they built, Marcelo has never wanted to get into debates about who is better between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo: "We were lucky to play in the same era as Cristiano and Messi. I don't like comparisons, but you have to acknowledge that both were incredible," Marcelo said, making it clear that, for him, both players are football legends.