Cooking Favorite Meals for Football Legends from Haaland to Ronaldo

I asked the biggest football stars on the planet their favorite foods and was shocked by who actually replied. And the first to answer was Erling Haaland. Hi Nick. My favorite meal is Tomahawk, of course, medium rare with Bernaise sauce. I like potatoes as well. They are my favorite meal. What a way to start. The moment I heard Tomahawk, I messaged all my steak dealers asking who could get me the biggest one because apparently Haaland eats 6,000 calories a day. And to be fair, he is Norway's all-time leading

scorer and one of the best strikers in the world. So, I understand why he needs the energy. His teammates also say he eats like a bear, which makes me wonder if that's why he chose Bernaise sauce. If you've never heard of it, it's this buttery steak sauce made from egg yolks, melted butter, and tarragon. Kind of similar to Hollandaise. For plating, we're going with a Viking theme since he's Norwegian and many people call him the Viking. And remember, he also asked for a side of potatoes. His grandfather was a potato farmer, which is why he loves them so much. This is the best looking first dish any video could ever have. I think we're all thinking the same thing here and that is how is this

thing cooked? Only one way to find out. It's like a giant prime rib. Tell me in the comments, is this perfect? I think I'm just going to eat it like a Viking. Mhm. Little potato. Oh. By the way, if you think this dish looks good, just wait until you see what's coming later in the video. But first, we're giving every player's favorite dish a ranking on this tier list and Erling Haaland just got A tier. Next up, the one and only Zlatan Ibrahimović. Hi Nick, this is Zlatan. So, one of my favorite food is kebab cuz where I come from, kebab was the main thing to eat. So, I'm expecting a very good kebab from you. So, now it's up to [clears throat]

you cuz where I come from, the kebab is special. Lots of pressure on this one. Zlatan has to be one of the most entertaining athletes who's ever lived. He's Sweden's all-time leading goal scorer, a black belt in taekwondo, and loves referring to himself in the third person. He grew up in an immigrant neighborhood in Sweden where kebab shops were on every corner. And because it was the cheapest food around, he'd fill up on them every day while running around playing football as a kid. So, we're making him that same donair style street kebab with meat on a vertical spit, shaved off, and wrapped up with all the classic toppings. He told me he's expecting a very good kebab, and Zlatan isn't

someone who asks twice. Zlatan, just for you, this is a beef kebab fit for a king. Mhm, wow. This right here is his childhood. It's what fueled his football journey. But, just because I thought he'd throw me a bit more of a curveball, Zlatan Ibrahimovic's favorite food will get a big strong beat here. Next up, we've got Harry Kane. Hi Nick. Uh, so one of my favorite dishes, especially after a match, is a crispy chicken burger in a nice brioche bun, some coleslaw in there, some cheese, and maybe like a spicy mayo to go with it as well. Fried chicken sandwich, love it. Harry Kane is a living legend. He's England's all-time leading goal scorer, but it's good to know that even the greats love a good chicken sandwich. I just think it's

a little ironic he chose this dish given Arsenal actually rejected him when he was younger for being, and I quote, "too chubby." But, don't worry, he's in great shape now. To make sure this sandwich is exactly to his liking, I'm melting some English cheddar over the top and even serving it on a golden bun since back in 2018, he won the Golden Boot award as the top scorer at the World Cup. And of course, I won't forget about the spicy mayo and coleslaw on there, either. Kane is apparently a massive Tom Brady fan, so I even called up Tom to get his approval before taking the first bite. Tom, what do you think?

I think that looks perfect, Nick, but you better eat it before I come over and take it for myself. Say no more. Mhm, it's got all the best parts of a fried chicken sandwich. Crispy chicken, spicy mayo, cold crunchy coleslaw, that gooey melted cheese, and a soft fluffy bun. But, I'm just not sure it's exciting enough. So, for that reason, Harry Kane's favorite dish is getting C tier. Next up, Memo Ochoa. Hey Nick, it's Memo. My favorite food is beef Wellington. What? I love it when it's cooked medium rare, with a crispy pastry on the outside, and a good sauce on the side.

It remind me some of great meals shared with my family and friends. Good luck, Nick. Well, that's not what I was expecting. Memo is Mexico's greatest goalkeeper of all time, but of all things, his favorite food being beef Wellington is something I would have never guessed. Lucky for him, I've got plenty of experience making them, but as I was making this one, I remembered that a good friend of mine can make them even better. That friend being none other than Gordon Ramsay. So, I messaged him for some help.

Hi, Nick. I'll send you along one of my specialties, this stunning beef Wellington. Perfectly cooked to that medium rare temperature. Now, all you have to make, young man, is a delicious sauce. Hope you're enjoying the wonderful World Cup. Come on, you know I trained to play soccer before I became a prolific chef, right? See you on the pitch and enjoy the welly. Well, this makes things a lot easier. Now that we've got this Wellington straight from Gordon's nearest restaurant, all that's left is to make the sauce. And because Memo is Mexican, we're making a mole inspired sauce to go with it. It's rich, earthy, and may just

be the best thing that's ever happened to a Wellington. Memo said his favorite part about this dish is that it reminds him of great meals with family and friends. So, I hope I've done it justice. I think we can all agree, perfect medium rare, just like Memo wanted. But, let's see about the taste. Mhm. In some ways, this whole dish is so confusing. It's a Mexican player who requested an English dish and it was made mostly by Gordon Ramsay, but it works. In fact, it's pretty darn near perfect. Memo, your favorite dish is going straight to A tier. Next up, Christian Pulisic. Hey, Nick. It's Christian Pulisic here. And my favorite meal to eat, especially when I come back to the US, is some crispy chicken wings, some buffalo

chicken wings with blue cheese, maybe some fries on the side, Okay. and of course, some homemade chocolate chip cookies. Of course. Some of my favorites. The most unhealthy meal award. Christian lives in Italy since he plays for AC Milan, but I love that his favorite foods are still three of the most American foods on Earth. I mean, buffalo wings, french fries, and chocolate chip cookies? Come on. I'm making the buffalo sauce homemade with my brand new Osmo magic sauce because everything Pulisic does on the field is magical. Uh-oh. I also think it's fun to know that he's from Hershey, Pennsylvania, the

chocolate capital of America, and I think it explains why he loves chocolate chip cookies so much. As the team USA captain, he earned the nickname Captain America, which apparently he doesn't really like, but we're going to plate everything on a Captain America shield anyways. Sorry, Christian. He also specifically asked for blue cheese dressing, which I'm going to pour all over the wings since I just think it'll look cool. And finally, we can eat. Mhm. Like I said, it doesn't get any more American than this. Saucy wings, crispy fries, chewy cookies. All these foods are so delicious, but they're a little weak compared to a lot of the food we have in this video, which is why

Christian Pulisic's favorite meal is getting a B tier. Next up, Ousmane Dembélé. Dembélé recently won the Ballon d'Or, which means he's currently the best football player on the planet. Someone once asked him if he's left-footed or right-footed, and he said he doesn't even know because both feet are equally good. I like to think that I'm just as good cooking with my left hand as I am with my right, but maybe that's not a fair comparison. I noticed that even though he messaged me in French, he didn't ask for French food. Thieboudienne is Senegal's national dish, and he chose it because his family is Senegalese. It's a dish that normally takes about 6 hours, but I've made my own slightly faster version, especially

because I know mine probably won't be quite as good as his mom's anyways. Just looking at this, I'm sad I've never gotten to try thieboudienne before, but very happy that I'm about to. Traditionally, you eat it with your hands, so I'm going to grab some of that flaky fish. Oh my, look at that. I'll pair my first bite with some cabbage and broken rice. Come on. I can already tell you this is going to rank high. It's tomatoey, savory, and that broken rice absorbs everything, so every bite is packed with flavor. Just by looking at it, I had a feeling Ousmane Dembélé's favorite dish

has earned our very first S tier. Woohoo! Next up, Robert Lewandowski. Hi Nick, here's Robert. My favorite food has to be pasta Portofino. Wow. Uh loads of pesto, good olive oil, and sweet tomato sauce. That somehow make everything better. It should taste like summer in Italy. Good luck. Pasta Portofino. Lewandowski is Poland's all-time leading scorer and greatest ever footballer, yet his favorite food is Italian. But I'm not going to question it because pasta Portofino is such a great answer. If you've never

heard of it, it was created accidentally when a chef in Italy once ran out of pesto halfway through dinner service and mixed in some tomato sauce to stretch it. And that accident became one of Italy's most beloved pasta dishes, made with a creamy pink sauce that's half pesto, half tomato. He specifically said it should taste like summer in Italy, which is why it's important that we make everything from scratch here. And keep in mind, this is a guy who once scored five goals in nine minutes. A performance so absurd it broke four Guinness World Records. So when he tells me how his pasta should taste, I'm going to listen carefully. Lewandowski actually follows a strict diet where he eats dessert before his main course

because apparently sweet foods digest faster and don't compete with the proteins in his main meal. I don't really understand it, but I'm never going to complain about having some tiramisu before my pasta. I may just start doing this every day. As for our pasta Portofino, looks amazing, smells amazing. Mhm. It's delicious. It's similar to what I expected, an ultra-creamy tomatoey pesto pasta. Robert Lewandowski's favorite meal deserves a solid B tier. Next up, we've got David Beckham. He invited me to come cook with him in person, but once I got there, I realized it wouldn't be fair to the rest of the players in the video. So I asked him what to make back at home, and he answered I've always loved honey since I was a little kid.

And this makes sense because in addition to being one of the most famous footballers to ever live, Beckham is also a very serious beekeeper. He has over 25 hives at home and even started his own honey brand. So in honor of his British heritage, I've decided to make him a toffee pudding using honey instead of sugar. For anyone who's never had sticky toffee pudding, imagine this rich warm cake drenched in caramel sauce. Now, imagine that same thing but with all of that sweetness coming from honey instead of sugar. It just goes to show that sometimes when you bend the rules in cooking, you end up with something even better than the original. And if there's anyone who knows about bending things, it's Beckham.

Let's taste before it melts. I don't normally like dessert, but this is better than regular sticky toffee pudding. It's got a sweet caramelized honey flavor with every texture you could ever want. And the balance between hot and cold with that ice cream, chef's kiss. David Beckham's favorite dish gets a very well-deserved A tier. Next up is Luka Modrić. Hi Nick, my favorite meal is pizza. Mhm. Very thin, Dalmatian prosciutto on the top, some cheese and olives, spicy sauce. Good luck, you'll do it well.

Sounds delicious. I didn't know this, but pizza is everywhere in Croatia since it's so close to Italy. But they like it crispier than American and Neapolitan style, which is why I'm pressing and rolling the dough out until it's almost see-through. We'll keep the toppings simple with spicy tomato sauce as the base and some classic mozzarella cheese. I'm going all out here because a few years ago Modrić won the award for best soccer player in the world and was very specific about how he wanted this pizza. He even requested Dalmatian prosciutto as the topping, which is a special smoked cured ham from the coast of Croatia where he grew up. I wasn't allowed to import that exact type, but I

got the closest thing I possibly could so I could carve it fresh. Now that the pizza's baked, we'll finish it off with the prosciutto, top it with olives in the pattern of a soccer ball, and finally some homemade spicy chili oil as requested. I'm going to cut it into six pieces for his six Champions League titles. I love a thin crust pizza. Mhm. Probably not the pizza that I would personally order. The mix of black olives and prosciutto makes it extra salty, and I don't love when a pizza or a sandwich has a meat on it where you have to awkwardly tear through like this. It's hard though because it's such a beautiful pizza, but I think Luka Modrić's pizza gets a C tier. C for Croatia. Next up, Gerard Piqué.

Hey Nick, I want you to cook me a Spanish omelette. No cheese, salt, pepper, and whatever ingredients you want to put, but no cheese, please. Okay. Spanish omelette, okay? Thank you very much. Got it. Piqué spent his entire career at Barcelona and is considered one of the best defenders in football history. And all he wants is a Spanish omelette, known in Spain as a tortilla española. These are made with just eggs, potatoes, and olive oil, but there's also a huge debate on whether or not you should add onions. Every bar, kitchen, and grandmother in Spain makes these, and they all swear theirs is the best. But

I'm obviously going to try to top theirs, too. Piqué said twice not to add cheese, so I'm staying away from that. To keep things traditional, we also have to let it cool to room temperature before eating. So, while we wait, I'm turning our omelette into the Spanish flag using a few different colored peppers. Now that it's all cooled, we actually cut it like a cake. Spanish omelettes are thick, so you're really taking out a slice. And apparently, it's also acceptable to eat it with your hands. Mhm. I don't know what I was expecting. That's incredible. It's especially rich and buttery and even custardy from all that olive oil. My only complaint is I wish it was something a little more

exciting, which is why Gerard Piqué's favorite dish is getting a B tier. Next up, David Luiz. Hello, hello, Nick. It's a pleasure to be here. My favorite meal is rice, white rice, beans, black beans from Minas Gerais in Brazil. And then you can do a meat well done with some onions. And then steam kale. Like in this way, you can make the kale. And then also is angu. It's like a polenta, but small liquid. So, in the end of the day, we can mix everything, and then we're going to enjoy. See you soon. It was a pleasure. He wants six things in one plate. Okay. Brazil is the most successful football nation on Earth with five World Cup wins, more than any other country. And in addition to being a legend for the

Brazilian national team, David has also played for Chelsea, PSG, and Arsenal, and even owns a restaurant in London. So, he definitely knows his food. And by the way, you're probably also wondering why we're suddenly not in my kitchen, and that's because he asked for a very specific style of home cooking from a region in Brazil called mineiro. So, because my friend Guga happens to be from that exact same region, I asked him to make this one for me and ship it overnight from Miami. My only worry now is how well this actually held up in the mail. Let's hope it still looks good. He covered it up, that's smart. I like how he bubble wrapped it, too, that's good.

Look at that. Can you believe it looks like that from flying? I'm going to start by cutting into the steak. I feel like we're all probably wondering, is it cooked perfectly? Because if Guga followed my and David's instructions, this should be well-done. Oh, no. This might even be past well-done. You can hear me chewing it, it's almost crunchy. But, this is traditional for this type of meal in Brazil, and this is what David wanted, so I'm okay with it. It's also seasoned beautifully. How about the beans? Guga. Guga, what are you doing? You cooked the steak well-done. That's what David wanted. You barely cooked the beans. The beans are rare, they're crunchy. Let's try this.

Mhm. I don't think I'll ever like okra. Now that I've tried it all individually, I'm going to kind of mix everything together like David suggested. I want to make sure I get the proper perfect bite. It tastes like I've walked into someone's home in Brazil. But, unfortunately for David, my friend Guga really undercooked those beans. David Luiz's favorite dish is going in D tier. D for David, I guess. Next up is Chicharito. Hey Nick, this is Chicharito. My favorite food is chilaquiles, especially with salsa roja, crema, queso fresco, and sunny side up eggs on top. I grew up eating them in Mexico, they're still one of my favorite comfort foods.

Good luck. So, Chicharito wants chilaquiles. Before we talk about chilaquiles, let's talk about how Chicharito got his nickname, because his real name is actually Javier Hernández. As the story goes, his dad had bright green eyes, which are very rare in Mexico. So, his family nicknamed him chícharo, which means pea, because his eyes looked like green peas. And, when his son was born with the same green eyes, they called him Chicharito, meaning little pea. And, Chicharito went on to become Mexico's all-time leading goal scorer. And as we now know, the food that keeps him going is chilaquiles. Basically just fried tortilla chips simmered in salsa until they're just the right balance of crispy and saucy, then top with crema, queso

fresco, and a sunny-side up egg. It's the most popular breakfast in Mexico, and I plated this one as the Mexican flag. Red salsa on one side, white crema down the middle, and for the green section, even though it's non-traditional, I've used peas in honor of his nickname. I still can't believe that Chicharito's favorite dish is chilaquiles. It's so perfect. Obviously, we first need to pop the egg. And after being simmered in all that beautiful salsa, these chips should be just soft enough that we can kind of poke through them with a fork. You can always get in there with your hands, too. No one's going to get mad.

A stab when I see him. Chicharito, this is such a good choice for your favorite meal. It's beautiful, and it hits on all the different textures and flavors you could ever want. Chicharito is going to walk away with a very strong A tier. Next up, Sunil Chhetri. Hey, Nick. One of my absolute favorite thing to eat is called chole bhature. If you haven't had it yet, it's a deep-fried Indian bread, chickpea curry, carrot or chili pickle, we call it achar, and some onion by the side. I assure you will love it. Sounds amazing. You're probably thinking to yourself, "There's football in India?" And compared to cricket, it's tiny. But Chhetri has kept it alive.

He's India's all-time leading goal scorer, and at his peak was the third highest international scorer in the world, behind only Ronaldo and Messi. The dish he asked for is chole bhature, a spiced chickpea curry served with a deep-fried bread that puffs up like a balloon the second it hits the hot frying oil. In India, especially Delhi, you can find this on practically every street corner for less than a dollar. And I have to say, watching them puff up might be one of the most satisfying things I've ever seen. I'm serving it with achar, a traditional Indian pickle, along with green chilies and sliced red onion on the side.

I've been waiting all day to do this, and I can't wait to try. Before I react, little onion. Green chili. This is one of the best things I've eaten in a very long time. It's tangy, crunchy, crispy, chewy. It's got a little bit of everything. All right, absolutely love it. Sunil Chhetri's favorite dish, without question, goes straight to S-tier. Next up, Achraf Hakimi. My favorite meal is the couscous, Moroccan couscous. Um make it from my mom. If not, it will not be the same. I'm not his mom, but I'll try my best. Hakimi is currently ranked as the best defender in the world. And there's this famous moment where after a huge win with Morocco, he ran past every single

teammate on the pitch straight to his mom in the stands. So, when I asked him his favorite food and he said Moroccan couscous from his mom, it all made sense. And it also reminded me that my mom made me and my brothers lots of couscous growing up. So, this one feels personal. In Morocco, couscous brings the whole family together every Friday around one big platter. So, Hakimi, I really hope your mom would be proud of this one. With couscous, you want to take your right hand and you want to press together some of those soft little pearls and kind of roll them up into a ball. First bite, I just want to try it plain.

Amazing. You know what's so good about this is that in that two-section pot we used, all that broth and the vegetables steam and give their flavor to the couscous as it cooks. And I can taste all that in there. It's not normal couscous, and I'm sorry to my mom, but it's a lot better than the couscous we had growing up. I bet Hakimi's mom makes an S-tier couscous, but for this one here, Achraf Hakimi's favorite dish is getting a very solid B-tier. Next up, João Félix. Hey Nick, how are you? Um my favorite dish is a Portuguese dish. It calls arroz de cabidela. Good luck. Let's do this. Félix is only 25 and has already played for four of the biggest clubs in football: Atlético Madrid, Chelsea, Barcelona, and AC Milan. At age

19, he won the award for best player in Europe and now plays alongside Cristiano Ronaldo on both his club team and the Portuguese national team. And don't forget, Ronaldo's favorite dish is coming later in the video. Félix requested arroz de cabidela, a traditional Portuguese rice dish that gets its signature dark color from a very specific ingredient that I'll let you look up on your own time. But I've swapped that ingredient out for squid ink, which gives that same rich dark color with a hopefully similar flavor. Every family in Portugal has their own version of this dish, and I love that it represents real authentic home cooking.

I'm going to build the perfect bite here with a bit of chicken and some of that black rice. Mhm. The chicken is beautiful. It's soft and tender, but the rice is really rich, almost a little bit metallic in flavor. Let me apologize in advance. I love Portugal. I love Portuguese food, but I changed one of the few main ingredients in this dish, which I think warrants a red card and unfortunately puts this dish in F tier. Not your fault, Joal. Next up, Thierry Henry. Hello, Nick. This is Thierry. My favorite food, all dishes, shall I say, is from the Caribbean. Ah.

One is called dombré. You going to have to do your own research. The other one is colombo de poulet, and the last one is lambi. Mhm. with rice. Cool. There you go. I give you three options. Have fun with it. Three options. Thierry doesn't follow the rules. Thierry is the only player to give me three completely different dishes instead of one, which means we have to spin this wheel to find out which one we're making. And it appears we've landed on lambi, a Caribbean conch stew served with rice. Now, what's interesting here is that Henry is both France and Arsenal's all-time leading

goal scorer, but his favorite food isn't French. It's Caribbean, and that's because his family is from Guadeloupe, where conch is one of the most prized ingredients around. But it's tough, so you have to give it plenty of time to cook or it'll turn out chewy and rubbery. Henry was once part of the only team ever to go an entire Premier League season unbeaten. They call that team the Invincibles, so the least I can do is get his conch stew right. All right, lambi. This has to be some of the coolest plating of the whole video. Mhm. If you've never had conch, it's very similar in texture to calamari. The stew is okay. It's rich and tomatoey with a slight heat, and then you get that satisfying chewiness from the

conch, but I conch itself is what's holding it back. Thierry Henry's favorite dish gets B tier. Next up, Eberchi Eze. Yo Nick, it's Ebs here, man. I heard you want to have a go cooking my favorite meal, what I normally have for most games. Red pesto pasta, rigatoni pasta, chicken, prawns, and a little bit of mozzarella. Red pesto. Ebs eats this before every single match. So, it sounds like a recipe for success given he's just won the FA Cup and the Premier League back-to-back and is a chess champion on the side. Traditional pesto has five simple ingredients: pine nuts, garlic, Parmesan, basil, and olive oil. And red pesto is the same thing but replaces most of that basil with sun-dried tomatoes, which happen to be

my least favorite food. Hopefully, it doesn't affect the rating too much, but I'll be honest, it might. I'm going to plate this dish into the shape of the England flag since that's where he's from and top it off with mozzarella cheese, chicken, and prawns just like he asked. All right, Ebs, let's see what you got. Mhm, I'm going to get some red pesto pasta with little mozzarella. Here's the thing. I told you I'm not the biggest fan of sun-dried tomatoes. At the same time, this is the type of dish I feel like I would have wanted before a soccer game when I used to play. So, it's hard cuz it's not his fault I don't

love sun-dried tomato, but it is what it is. So, Berardi Eze's favorite dish is getting C tier. Next up, Antoine Griezmann. Instead of a video, he replied with a one-word answer: tartiflette. I love it. When Griezmann won the World Cup, he celebrated by doing a Fortnite dance in the middle of the field. That should tell you everything you need to know about him, but in case you're curious for more, he's France's third all-time leading goal scorer and has been one of the best players in the world for the last decade. And his favorite food is tartiflette, a classic dish from the French Alps made with layers of potatoes, cream, bacon, and an entire wheel of melted cheese on top. It's the kind of thing you eat after a long day on a cold, snowy French mountain or

maybe on a football pitch. And if you really think about it, it's basically Ratatouille's cheesy cousin. This is my dream. I know this isn't how you're supposed to eat it, but I'm going to dig in with a spoon. That's the ultimate comfort food. Creamy potatoes, salty bacon, that thick layer of melted cheese that's rich and a little bit funky. This is such a smart and unique favorite dish at the same time. And it is just so, so, so French. Antoine Griezmann's dish is going S tier. Our final player is the one and only Cristiano Ronaldo. But we did get in touch with him and he's a bit too busy to send us a clip given the World Cup's

happening right now. So instead, I have my friend Speed telling us the dish on his behalf. Yo, Nick. Ronaldo's favorite food is this Portuguese dish. It's called bacalhau It's Portuguese. You cannot mess this up, Nick. Get it right. For real, bro. Please. I have no idea how to pronounce that dish, but I will try my best to make it. Ronaldo needs no introduction, but his dish definitely does. Especially since Speed also messed up the pronunciation. The dish is called bacalhau à brás and it's one of Portugal's most iconic dishes made with soft scrambled eggs, shredded salt cod, and crispy matchstick potatoes all mixed together in one. It's sometimes topped off with black olives.

In this case, seven to represent his number. Let's see what you got, Ronaldo. I'm really trying to like this dish. If I think hard about the positives here, it's creamy, crunchy, and salty all at the same time. And then you get the sweetness from the onions and garlic and little bursts of brininess from the olives. But that shredded salted cod that's in there is so salty. Let me give it one more shot. I can appreciate parts of this dish. You know what? We're going to give Ronaldo's favorite dish a good solid B tier.