Emmanuel Adebayor has fondly remembered a time he understood by experience how professional and seriously Cristiano Ronaldo took his work. 

Adebayor had freshly signed to Madrid from Manchester City as a loan, in January 2011. Jose Mourinho was managing Madrid at this time, and sought to buttress his attack, with Karim Benzema finding his footing, and Gonzalo Higuain injured. 

"When I first signed with Madrid, we all knew Cristiano Ronaldo was a professional – always on time. I was told training starts at 1:30, so I made it a point to arrive around 8:30 or 8:45, giving myself at least two hours alone," the Togolese narrated.

The former Arsenal star continued: "I got there around 8:45, feeling proud to be the first to arrive and show my professionalism. 

"But when I asked one of the physios about the noise downstairs, he told me it was Ronaldo swimming. I realised I wasn’t the first after all – I was second! When I approached Ronaldo to exchange greetings, I learned he had arrived at 7:30. I simply wished him good luck and left."