Perhaps no athlete in soccer, that most international of sports —
not David Beckham, not Thierry Henry, not Andriy Shevchenko —
is as popular as a ponytailed Brazilian with a toothy smile.
Ronaldinho, the two-time FIFA player of the year for Europe's
best team, is a supernova compared to such stellar teammates as
Samuel Eto'o, Rafael Marquez and Lionel Messi.
The opportunity to see Ronaldinho's creativity against Mexico's
CD Guadalajara attracted 92,650 fans — the largest crowd to
watch a club soccer game in the USA — to Los Angeles Memorial
Coliseum on Sunday night.
The Coliseum became
a spectrum of color.
Thousands wore
Barcelona's jerseys,
either the red and blue
or neon yellow models.
Hundreds wore Brazil's
yellow and green shirts,
many of them bearing
Ronaldinho's No. 10.
Ronaldinho spent the first
half on the bench in a polo
shirt, shorts and sandals.
Then he made a dramatic entrance.
As he trotted onto the field by himself in full uniform for the start of
the second half, he received a loud ovation amid thousands of
camera flashes.
When he first touched the ball, Ronaldinho received cheers.
When he pulled the ball back against Guadalajara's Omar Bravo
while dribbling, Ronaldinho received more cheers.
When Ronaldinho quickly poked the ball to Eidur Gudjohnsen late
in the game, Gudjohnsen turned that pass into a goal in the 73rd
minute.
After Guadalajara tied the score, Ronaldinho had one more
chance to enchant the crowd. But he swerved his 29-yard free
kick just wide of the left post in the 86th minute. "The reception
from the crowd was exceptional," Ronaldinho said. "It was great to
play in the United States."
Ronaldinho Helps Sets US Soccer Record in LA
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