Brazil great Ronaldinho said he hopes he can score his 300th career goal after announcing a comeback at the age of 46 at Italian third-tier side Ravenna.

Thousands of fans gathered at a city beach for an event dubbed “Ronaldinho Day”, enduring rain to witness the unveiling of the former Paris St-Germain, Barcelona and AC Milan playmaker, who retired from playing in 2015.

“I’m very happy to be here with friends, we have a team that can do something good,” said Ronaldinho, who will become a shareholder in the Serie C side.

“Will you see me play? I don’t know, only the coach knows that. Coming back to Italy is wonderful, I’m here to help my teammates win.

“As you can see, I’m in shape, I feel good… If I could score my 300th goal, that would be even more beautiful.”

Ronaldinho ended his career in September 2015 when he played his last official match with Brazilian club Fluminense.

He won the World Cup in 2002, scoring the winning goal in the quarter-final against England, and the Ballon d’Or in 2005.

The forward’s comeback was first announced in June by Ignazio Cipriani, an Italian-American businessman and owner of the club since 2024, while he was attending the World Cup in Miami.

“His objective is romantic, to try to score his last goal,” said Cipriani on Thursday.

“His involvement is not a token gesture or a marketing stunt to get people talking about us.”

Cipriani added that Ronaldinho would not play against Reggiana on Monday in the Serie C season opener.

Ravenna finished third in Group B of last season’s third-tier championship and are seeking a return to Serie B, where they haven’t played since 2008.

Hull City owner Acun Ilicali has criticised pundits Joe Cole and Carlton Cole after they mocked his side’s chances of Premier League survival on a podcast.

Speaking on The Dressing Room podcast, former England and Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole said he had turned down the chance to be a pundit for their opening match – adding he would be “stunned if they stayed up”.

He joked: “They’ve come here through the back door. They’ve slipped in.”

Hull achieved promotion to the Premier League with a last-minute win over Middlesbrough in the play-off final at Wembley in May.

This season will be Hull’s first in the Premier League since 2017. They only survived relegation from the Championship to League One on goal difference in 2025.

Writing on social media, Ilicali said: “It is disappointing to see my beautiful city criticised by people who should know better.

“As a club we are used to being underestimated and we enjoy it, and we enjoyed it more when were promoted last season.

“For me, seeing two ex-players making fun of a deservedly promoted club, is more laughable than the things they were laughing at.”

On Thursday, Hull boss Sergej Jakirovic also addressed the issue.

“It is a great motivation to prove them wrong, if it’s possible,” he said.

“It will not be easy but at least we can fight there. We don’t have anything to lose. You play for yourself, and you show your potential on the pitch.”

Later Carlton Cole, who played for Chelsea and West Ham and made seven England appearances, posted a video defending the comments on the podcast, calling it “banter” saying he “loved Hull City“.

Hull, who have spent £70m on new signings this summer, play Manchester United on Saturday in their opening Premier League fixture.