Cristiano Ronaldo "struggled" as he was asked about his late father in an interview with Piers Morgan in what was a "painful" segment for the star, an expert told us.
The football legend broke down in tears as he was played a video clip of his father discussing his growing success, prior to his death in 2005 from liver failure. He was an alcoholic, with Ronaldo admitting he didn't really know his father.
As presenter Piers showed him the clip before asking him how it made him feel, the football star was left in tears because he'd never seen that video of his father, or heard what he'd said about him, prior to the interview.
Body language expert and author Judi James told us of the interview: "Controlled, glamorous and oozing caution behind a veneer of desired openness, Ronaldo sat back on his sofa allowing those splayed, multi-million dollar legs encased in skintight white jeans to be the silent stars of the show.
"He was eloquent and good-humoured but Piers Morgan’s complimentary ‘grilling’ did little to knock, crack or erode his aura of smiling confidence and easy charisma.
"Most of his responses looked effortlessly delivered in a way that suggested he’d covered the memories and points many times before in interviews.
"His gestures included some steepled fingers or thumbs, rituals that implied precise, logical thinking rather than implying he was digging deep emotionally.
"He did act out conversations with his mother but they were light-hearted and he shook his head to show good-humour."
Judi continued, speaking about the moment he broke down about his father: "But it wouldn’t have been a Piers Morgan interview without the ‘sweet spot’ of tears and these erupted dramatically when the subject of Ronaldo’s father came up.
"It would be wrong to say the emotions we saw as Ronaldo watched the footage of his dad talking were acted or sham.
"As soon as the subject came up he sucked his lips in and seemed to finger his watch as though keen to get that segment and the pain that came with it over.
"His eyes reddened and the way he scratched his chin suggested strong emotions that he was trying to control.
"He wiped his chin with his hand and then his eyes and his voice cracked as the tears came.
"His smile suggested he was struggling with his responses but in the end he was dabbing at his eyes with a tissue and reaching for water."
Viewers were moved to tears by the highly emotional scenes, praising the star throughout the interview.
