Cristiano Ronaldo's former bodyguard has revealed how much the football icon used to pay him in a tell-it-all interview.

Ronaldo is undoubtedly one of the most recognisable faces in the world, having built his fortune from his talent and hard work in football over the years.

The winger-turned-forward started his career at Sporting Lisbon before moving to Manchester United, where he won the 2008 Champions League and the Ballon d'Or under Sir Alex Ferguson.

He joined Real Madrid, where he cemented his place as one of the best players the world has ever seen alongside Lionel Messi. He scored 450 goals in nine years in the Spanish capital, adding four more Ballon d'Or awards, Champions League trophies and many other titles to his cabinet.

Ronaldo later moved to Juventus before having a second stint at Manchester United, which ended on a sour note. Despite his 'old age', he still secured a move to Al-Nassr in early 2023, where he became the world's best player.

For his country, Ronaldo captained Portugal to Euro 2016 glory before winning the UEFA Nations League a couple of years later.

It is therefore prudent for a superstar like Ronaldo to have the best security available. It is not easy protecting the Portuguese superstar as he is always mobbed by fans every time he is in the public eye.

His former bodyguard, Hichman Bukhari, had lifted the lid on what it takes to protect the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.

Bukhari is a former PMC private military contractor and CPO close protection operative who specialised in protecting executives. He has over 128,000 followers on Instagram.

In an interview with Telecinco, Bukhari revealed that Ronaldo wasn't a high-risk client as no one wanted to kill him, only people who wanted to rob him.

"Our work depends on the client's profile. In the case of Cristiano, with whom I worked for four years, his profile wasn't high-risk because people didn't want to kill him, and he didn't receive death threats."

"We always have to know where we're going, who will be there, and have clear entry and exit points, as well as contact points."

Bukhari praised Ronaldo as 'the best boss' he ever had, and for his efforts, the Real Madrid icon paid him £850 (approximately KSh 148,000) per day. Assuming he was paid every single day for the four years he worked for Ronaldo, Bukhari netted a cool KSh 216 million.

"We have a good relationship. Working with him didn’t feel like dealing with someone under constant threat of death or kidnapping. We had a few ridiculous run-ins with paparazzi or overzealous fans, but nothing serious."

In a separate report, AC Milan icon Paolo Maldini settled the GOAT debate between Messi and Ronaldo.

In a recent interview, the Italian football legend expressed his admiration for both players; however, Maldini chose Messi.

The retired defender also detailed how he tried to convince the mercurial Argentine to complete a transfer to AC Milan when it became certain he would be departing Barcelona.

Source: TUKO.co.ke