Ronaldo fires Blues warning
19 Sep 2008 - 08:11:55
Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo has fired a warning to Chelsea ahead of Sunday's showdown by claiming he won't be intimidated by Premier League bullies.
Last season's 42-goal top-scorer is expected to be named on the bench for the trip to Stamford Bridge after making his first appearance of the season as a second-half substitute during Wednesday's Champions League stalemate with Villarreal.
Ronaldo's last appearance for the Red Devils had been in May's Champions League Final success over Chelsea in Moscow and the 23-year-old wideman has warned the Blues that any attempt to rough him up on Sunday will fail.
He told The Sun: "I know that the attempts to intimidate me on the pitch will start again immediately - but everyone finds sooner or later that it is difficult to make me lose my rag.
"I'll be booted again but I will not kick out when it happens. I'm tough and, again, it's all just part of the spectacle.
"I'll do my damage as usual by paying them all back with my goals."
Meanwhile, Ronaldo has rejected claims that United's stuttering start to the new season threatens to undermine their chances of repeating last year's Premier League and Champions League double.
"There's no problem at all with our form," he claimed. "Last year we started like this and look how we ended up."