Winning both the Champions League and European Championship has made 2016 one of Cristiano Ronaldo's most successful years in football, and the winger has spoken about the final of the latter, discussing a joke he shared with Antoine Griezmann some time after the game. A chance encounter with the Frenchman showed how their rivalry is a pleasant one off the pitch. "He's my neighbour in Madrid, and last season he played very very well and lost both times, but he's a nice guy," Ronaldo told France Football. "Shortly after the game, I saw him in a restaurant in Miami on holiday, having dinner with his girlfriend. He came over and said hello to me, with a knowing smile he said: 'Cristiano, I hate you'." Just 25 minutes into the contest, Ronaldo was forced to be replaced after suffering a knee injury during the match, but he feels Les Bleus were never in control of the game. "They were smiling a lot before the game," said Ronaldo. "It seemed that all the players thought that this was a game that they could easily win." Failing to have an impact on the game from the bench would have been tough for someone with Ronaldo's ability, and the striker spoke of what it was like to be subbed off early. "It was the greatest punishment of my career," he said. "It just was not the end that I had dreamed of. Unfortunately I could not bend my leg, and I had to come off."
Despite the disappointment, Ronaldo is clear favourite to win this year's Ballon d'Or competition, a feat that would put him level with Lionel Messi as a four-time winner.Champions League game against Sporting Clube de Portugal on Tuesday evening, Real Madrid have been mobbed by groups of fans, with Cristiano Ronaldo the most popular among them. Upon arrival at their hotel in the Portuguese capital, around 300 people gathered to welcome the players. Although no autographs were signed, Sporting academy product Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane, in particular, were asked for selfies from the group of predominantly teenagers. On Monday evening, the team will eat and remain at the Pestana Palace in a residential part of the city until 19:30 CET, when Zidane will be joined by goalkeeper Keylor Navas for the pre-match press conference. Half an hour later, the full touring squad is set to train behind closed doors on the Estadio Jose Alvalade pitch as they hone their plans for the match. Barely 24 hours after that, an expectant crowd of around 50,000 spectators will take to the stands to see their team do battle against their former hero.
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