The Juventus forward has inspired a lot of footballers around the globe through his industry and desire to improve.
Depay has admitted he grew up idolizing Ronaldo and even took the former Manchester United man’s no. 7 jersey when he made a switch to Old Trafford from PSV in 2014.
The Dutchman could not impress during his time at Old Trafford like Ronaldo but has somewhat rediscovered his old form since moving to the French Ligue 1 in 2017.
He has scored 43 league goals in 102 outings for Lyon since his debut in the 2016-2017 season.
The duo met in the Champions League Round of 16 last week, where Depay helped Lyon knock Juventus out of the competition, despite the latter scoring a brace.
“Cristiano has always been my hero. He stands for world-class,” the 26-year-old told the Mirror.
“As a player, nobody has invested more in himself than Cristiano, which is why he is able to keep playing at an extremely high level.”
“Even in commercial ways, he is the top example to every footballer. Even at PSV Eindhoven, I was doing 200 sit-ups a day and all kinds of cardio stuff.”
“I always had it in my mind that a strong body would help me as a player and would help me to get good commercial deals at the same time.”
