Fernando Caceres, the former River Plate, Boca Juniors, Zaragoza, Celta, Valencia and Argentina player, talked to the Youtube channel ‘Idolos’. He revealed that he was offered half a million pesetas to
Ronaldinho’s arrival in Spain changed La Liga. The Brazilian soon caught everyone’s attention and became the main attraction of Spanish football. His best version helped Barca to have a golden era.
But not everyone enjoyed watching the ’10’ show off his magic. That is what Fernando Caceres said. The former player is still recovering after getting shot in the head during an attempted robbery in 2009 and he revealed that he was offered money to injure the Barcelona man in a game. It was the Celta versus Barca encounter in May 2004.
“We were playing a match Celta versus Barca in Vigo. The first time Ronaldinho went to get the ball, I kicked him from behind. I helped him to get up and I said to him that I had been offered 500,000 pesetas (3,005 euros) to force him off the pitch,” Caceres revealed.
But the Brazilian, far from being scared, actually challenged him: “He replied: ‘If you can catch me.’ I didn’t mark him anymore. I was scared. He was angry and when he was like that he was very good, strong and an impressive player. He was going to embarrrass me. They was no way I would mark him again during the match.”
However, Celta did not need him to mark Ronaldinho as the home side took home the three points thanks to an Edu goal. Caceres was one of the best players of the match and Ronaldinho was off colour at Balaidos.