He dabbles in all things sport but football is his biggest passion. Fabio Paim was supposed to be a bigger star than Cristiano Ronaldo. By the age of 14, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester United were regularly tracking his progress, and the French Football Federation were reported to have made an offer to his family to move to France so he could subsequently represent the country at international level.Such was the interest in the 16-year-old Paim, Sporting, desperate not to lose the most prodigiously talented teenager in Europe for free, gave him a contract worth a reported €20,000 a month, although he later suggested he was paid much more and the figure was only his “official” salary.But a first-team breakthrough failed to manifest itself at Sporting.

I would prefer to have much less quality and have the other part, then I could have been one of the best in the world.

He had a great work ethic and I didn’t have that. There is no comparison today.

The doors were open for me to do what I felt like.”.After a season in West London he returned to Portugal and was eventually released by Sporting in 2010.Paim then became a footballing journeyman, joining 12 different clubs in seven different countries, playing in countries including Angola, Qatar, Malta and even Lithuania.More recently, he was looking for game time with Portuguese second division side, Leixoes S.C in 2018, before moving to fourth tier side AD Sao Pedro da Cova on a free.In 2019, Paim was arrested for possession of narcotics, but was later acquitted as wire-tapping is not admissible in a court of law.But Paim knows where he went wrong and where Ronaldo went right.He said: “At one point, I could do more than him but I did not have what he had, which is the strength and desire to be what I wanted to be. I would have been one of the best in the world. 9. Some players, like Cristiano Ronaldo, thrive off the expectation. A wonderkid from every Football Manager game. I would have been one of the best in the world. I wasn’t ready for it.“I didn’t have what young players have now which is an example to follow.

For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click,Comments are subject to our community guidelines, which can be viewed,Fabio Paim was supposed to be a bigger star than Cristiano Ronaldo,The attacking midfielder was at Sporting Lisbon the same time as Ronaldo,He was tied down to a £18,000 per week contract at the age of 16,Portuguese super agent Jorge Mendes acted on Paim's behalf,While there was hope Brendan Rodgers could get the best out of Paim at the Blues,His career is now a case of what could've been,While Cristiano Ronaldo went on to become one of the world's greatest ever players,Assistant Chelsea manager Gianfranco Zola reacts to the sacking of Jose Mourinho at Manchester United,Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). Then there are others, such as Fabio Paim, who are crushed under it.Chances are you have never heard of Paim, a now 32-year-old winger whose rollercoaster career has taken him to the football backwaters of Angola, Qatar, China, Malta, Lithuania and Luxembourg over the past decade.It was in his homeland of Portugal, however, that Paim's once promising career began, with Sporting CP luring the attacker to their youth ranks at just nine years of age.In his early days in Lisbon he would cross paths with a young Ronaldo, who could not help but notice the considerable talent Paim possessed. I spent time with people I wanted to and did what I wanted.“At the time, no one criticised me when things were going well. If you’re going to listen to anyone for an insight into Portuguese footballing talent, Sporting Lisbon scout Aurélio Pereira is about as good as it gets.Cristiano Ronaldo is the obvious place to start, but Pereira also discovered the likes of Ricardo Quaresma and Joao Moutinho. I believed I had more talent than everyone else. ".Talent alone, as they say, is never enough. It shows the transfer history, the clubs Fábio Paim played for in his career, time of transfers and the transfer fees. "I would have preferred to have less quality if I had more of the other part. I would have done it differently, if I could.“I knew what I was doing. I had the quality, at least as much as him, but I did not have the rest.“I would have preferred to have less quality if I had more of the other part. He was once hit in the head by a wayward strike from Nicky Butt and lived to tell the tale.Wolves Winger Daniel Podence Pulls Off Outrageous Nutmeg On Kevin De Bruyne,Dana White Gives A Tour Of His Fight Island Hotel Room And It Looks Incredible,Paul Pogba's Awful Performance Vs Crystal Palace Can Be Seen In One 30 Second Clip. I thought having talent was enough but it's not. But, no one is born perfect.

You need role models.
"If you think I'm good, just wait until you see Fabio Paim."

I would have been one of the best in the world. He had a great work ethic and I didn't have that. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's,Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. "At one point, I could do more than him but I did not have what he had, which is the strength and desire to be what I wanted to be. He dabbles in all things sport but football is his biggest passion.

"He had a great work ethic and I didn’t have that.

I would have been one of the best in the world. Loan spells at local Lisbon outfit Olivais Moscavide and second-tier side Trofense followed, and he eventually made his top-flight debut in the aforementioned spell with Paços Ferreira.By then, however, the fame and fortune which came as a direct result from the hype he had created with such exciting displays in his youth career had led to him developing one vice in particular.“I spent a lot of money on cars. All of them. "He is out of this world. On the field, I did what I had to, in order to retreat to my place. But while Ronaldo's career took off in the blink of an eye, Paim's has instead stumbled from one disaster to the next.Paim's career arguably blossomed too soon, with elite clubs across Europe, including Barcelona and Manchester United, scouting him as a teenager.Sporting were desperate to keep hold of their young star, however, and ended up throwing considerable money at a player who only years before could not even afford proper boots.Paim himself has suggested he was earning up to €150,000 a month while still just 16 and yet to play a senior game of football.