MILAN, Italy (AP) -- Injury-plagued former Brazil star Ronaldo is still unsure
whether he will return to professional football, and has revealed that his
22-minute appearance in a charity match this week has not helped him decide.
 
The three-time FIFA player of the year ruptured a tendon in his left knee in an
Italian Serie A game with AC Milan in February -- the third major knee injury of
his career -- and is still in rehab.
After a brief appearance in the Match Against Poverty, a charity game sponsored
by the United Nations on Monday in Fez, Morocco, Ronaldo said he felt "very
tired."
"I only played 22 minutes because I had a muscle problem recently," the striker
said in Wednesday's Gazzetta dello Sport.
"I'm tired because the rehab work I've done is tough and my legs are heavy.
Football is my life, but 22 minutes at that pace is not much more than an
exhibition. Real professionalism is completely different."
The 32-year-old recently turned down an offer from Siena president Giovanni
Stronati to play in Serie A again on a pay-as-you-score deal.
 
"I thank him, but I really don't know what the future holds for me," Ronaldo
said. "I don't know whether to continue playing or retire. I haven't taken a
decision yet.
"There's no rush. I want to finish my rehab, and then... you know how these
things go. I could decide tomorrow or a month from now. I really don't know."
The Gazzetta speculated that if he retired, Ronaldo could be offered a position
by world ruling body FIFA as a missionary ambassador to developing countries.
Ronaldo, twice a World Cup winner and who in 2006 became the tournament's
all-time leading scorer with 14 goals, is already a goodwill ambassador for the
UN Development Program.
"I consider myself a lucky man, and to be able to give back in some way seems
the least I can do," he said.




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