Ronaldinho was wearing a customised Burnley shirt this Christmas for a good reason

It has been described as one of the most random moments of the festive period so far.

Ronaldinho, a player who is widely regarded as one of the all-time greats, represented some of Europe's biggest clubs. From Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan to Barcelona, a spell in which he lifted the Ballon d'Or.

He achieved almost everything there is to win in the game. In fact, Ronaldinho is the only player ever to have lifted a World Cup, a Copa America, a Confederations Cup, a Champions League, a Copa Libertadores and a Ballon d'Or.

So earlier this week, when he decided to upload a video wearing a personalised Burnley shirt, many asked the same question... why?

Well, it appears the 44-year-old was wearing the famous claret and blue as a nod to his teenage son's summer move to the Championship club – a transfer that got plenty of people talking when it happened.

Joao Mendes, who played for the likes of Flamengo, Vasco de Gama, Boavista-RJ and Cruzeiro before joining Barcelona’s youth set-up in 2023, joined Burnley on a two-year deal in August.

"I feel blessed to be here and I’m excited to take on this opportunity," he said after the transfer was confirmed.

"The project is great and although the weather is different to what I’m used to where I’m from in Brazil, I can tell how passionate the fans are about football here and I really like the town.

"The other players have been very receptive, speaking to me and making me feel part of the group. Training has been great so far too."

Mendes added: "I’m a technical and fast player and my main is helping the team win games."

🇧🇷🤙 Ronaldinho was in a customised Burnley shirt for Christmas! 😅 pic.twitter.com/I1H71RKAWa

— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) December 26, 2024

Burnley manager Scott Parker was keen to temper expectations about the teenager.

"This is a player we see as a development player and a project in that sense," he said. "I get the excitement around it but I think it would be unfair to heap a huge amount of pressure on a young boy coming here.

"He knows why he is coming here in terms of development so I wouldn’t want to heap more pressure than that which is already on him."