Some of you were not even born when the one and only Ronaldo took the world of football by storm. He was a sensational, unstoppable striker of rare brilliance in and outside the area, who could find the back of the net with such ease. It remained the same during the 1998 FIFA World Cup, where he shined for Brazil and took them straight to the finals against the hosts France. But what happened then, just a day before the title game, remains a true mystery. Whatever the reason, he was unrecognizable that night in Paris and Brazil were swept off 3-0, following Zinedine Zidane’s brace.Ronaldo against Denmark in the quarter-finals (©Ross Kinnaird /Allsport)More than 20 years later, his then-teammate and regular sub, Edmundo, recalls how traumatic that whole day was.”When I saw Ronaldo having seizures, I came out screaming through the corridors. He was purple, with his tongue turned, snorting … The doctors arrived right away and managed to make him regain consciousness,” said Edmundo on ESPN, remembering every single detail of that particular day.##EDITORS_CHOICE##”Then he sat down, had some cake and an orange juice and went out to make a call,” he continues.At that time, Edmundo continues, Leonardo, current sports director of Paris Saint Germain, declared: ”This guy is not doing well, he is going to die on the field!” Edmundo, Cafu, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos in despair after the finals (©Ross Kinnaird /Allsport)They convinced him to do some tests in Paris, and, meanwhile, Zagallo made a decision that Edmundo would play instead of him in the starting XI. However, everything changed when they arrived at Stade de France stadium.”Minutes before the kick-off, my name was there among the starters. Then, Ronaldo arrived, accompanied by one of the doctors. He met with Zagallo and his staff for a few minutes, and when they left, the coach told me that Ronaldo would start”, explains Edmundo, who, despite that episode that Ronaldo went through, somehow understood that he was going to be a substitute again.(1.80) MALI (3.20) KENYA (4.70)”He was the best in the world, and for me, it was a medical decision, not a technical one,” he concludes.
