I didn't make Ronaldo, he made himself, says Sir Alex Ferguson

Sir Alex Ferguson believes he can take little credit for Cristiano Ronaldo's development into one of the finest footballers of all time.

Ferguson brought a teenage Ronaldo from Sporting to Manchester United in 2003 and oversaw his development to Ballon d'Or winner in 2008 before a then world-record move to Real Madrid a year later.

The 74-year-old Scot made his share of records tumble during a trophy laden reign at Old Trafford which lasted 27 years and he feels Ronaldo stands a cut above other stellar names he oversaw during 26-and-a-half years at the helm.

"Ronaldo is a perfect example of someone who made himself. It's easy for me to say, 'yeah, I made Ronaldo'," Ferguson said when he was honoured with the Walther Bensemann prize, which is awarded for outstanding work in football.

"Many coaches might say I made this player and I made that player, but Ronaldo made himself.

"We just gave him the tools and the platform to excel. His practice ethic was incredible. He was a fantastic player, he was the best.

"We had fantastic players in [Paul] Scholes, [Ryan] Giggs, and [Eric] Cantona. We had some fantastic footballers, but Ronaldo was just something else."