Cristiano Ronaldo’s commitment to his ultra-strict diet continues to impress his teammates – and even the chefs hired to prepare it.
Jonny Marsh has cooked for Kevin De Bruyne, served Kyle Walker, and put on a spread for Paul Pogba but Ronaldo remains his dream.
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Known as the ‘Football Feeder’, the Michelin-star-chef is the private chef of choice for Premier League and Euro 2024 superstars.
Having cooked meals for Walker, Jordan Pickford, Phil Foden, and Luke Shaw, Marsh has offered fans the chance to watch the quartet in action for England in Germany while receiving a three-course menu from him in their own home via Deliveroo.
While a dream for any Three Lions supporter, the Manchester United fan still has one person on his own bucket list to cook for.
When Ronaldo made his return to Old Trafford, Marsh was working for several of his teammates and studied his strict eating habits in case he got the call.
He exclusively told talkSPORT.com: “[Dream client], will always be Ronaldo. When he was at United, I’m not even ashamed to say it, I was trying big time.
“It’s like a closed door, you can’t get anywhere near, I didn’t succeed but maybe one day.
“I remember researching exactly what he eats and he has a salad nightly and he has a lot of similar things all the time.
“So I was like, right, I can stick to that sort of stuff depending on the day whether it’s pregame, postgame, cheat meal. He never has a cheat meal apparently. He’s just completely stone-cold sober, never has a cheat meal, never takes a day off. Nothing.”
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Ronaldo will begin his sixth tournament at the European Championship this weekend despite turning 40 early next year.
A large reason why is the dedication the Portuguese gives to his diet, which has influenced as many changing rooms as March’s cooking.
Lee Grant revealed to talkSPORT that he changed the eating culture in the Man United team when he arrived for his second stint.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner took his habits to Saudi Arabia, with Al Nassr’s club’s nutritionist even amazed at how much body fat Ronaldo’s teammates lost following his arrival.
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His Portugal teammates are also inadvertently ‘shamed’ into eating better, according to defender Jose Fonte.
Despite missing out on the chance to work with Ronaldo up close, Marsh still did get a peek behind the curtain.
He added: “Weirdly, the chef that [Ronaldo] ended up using in Manchester goes to the same butcher as I go to.
“I started chatting to him and zero days off – he cooked for him for six months, no days off at all.
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“The guy he had in Italy didn’t come over and Ronaldo has no days off food, it’s immensely clean!
“He said he works out six or seven days a week and it was just like, super clean.
“It’s an absolute joke. But I remember when he first came to United, I was working for a couple of other players and they all said everything changed. Like the way he ate. Everyone copied him.
“Everyone sort of said like, oh my god, like, he doesn’t eat anything bad. It was just nuts how clean he ate.”
“It just shows if you are disciplined with food, it does work – mixed with God-like genetics…”
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Private chef to pro footballers, Jonny Marsh, has teamed up with Deliveroo to offer fans the chance to eat like an England player, winning an at-home dining experience on match days on 20th and 25thJune. Order from participating restaurants from 14th-16th June, to find out more visit https://deliveroo.co.uk/news.