Ronaldo says ex-Chelsea defender was his most difficult opponent

Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed former England international Ashley Cole as the toughest defender he has ever faced.

While playing under Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, Ronaldo came up against Cole on a regular basis in the early stages of his career

Ronaldo joined the Red Devils from Sporting Lisbon in 2003, having impressed in a pre-season friendly played between both sides.

The Portuguese star spent six years at United between 2003 and 2009, back when the Premier League trophy was a three horse-race between United, Arsenal and Chelsea.

Cole had a successful spell with Arsenal in the 2003/04 season, before the 107-cap England star moved to rivals Chelsea, where he secured league titles in the 2004/05 and 2005/06 seasons, ahead of Ronaldo's United.

Speaking to Spanish talk show El Chiringuito TV (via the Daily Ma​il), the presenter asked the 33-year-old to name his toughest defensive opponent and Ronaldo pointed his early duels with the Englishman in their early years

Cole signed for Chelsea in 2006 from London rivals Arsenal in a controversial circumstance. He made a total of 229 appearances for the Blues at Stamford Bridge before joining Roma as a free agent in 2014.

He then spent two seasons in Rome and left for the MLS to play for LA Galaxy in 2016.

On the other hand, Ronaldo has continued to dominate European football as he has won five Ballon'd'Or awards.