Even the Brazilian president is worried about whether Ronaldo is packing too many pounds for the World Cup.

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva spoke with a few members of the Brazil squad in a 30-minute video conference late Thursday night, giving suggestions to players and asking coach Carlos Alberto Parreira whether Ronaldo was overweight.

"So, what is it? Is he fat or not?" Silva said from his office in the Brazilian capital, Brasilia.

"He is very strong, president," Parreira answered. "He is not that boy anymore, his body type has changed."

Many have said Ronaldo, who was not present, was overweight when he first reported to Brazil's training camp almost three weeks ago. The striker dismissed such comments, saying he was in good shape and would be in top form for Brazil's World Cup debut against Croatia on Tuesday. Brazilian doctors also said he was in good condition.

Ronaldo has had a dismal season because of a series of injuries since the beginning of the year. His latest ailment is a mild respiratory infection, which kept him from practicing with the Brazilian squad on Thursday.

He also suffered from blisters, which forced him to be substituted at halftime in Brazil's warm-up match against New Zealand last Sunday.

Playing in his fourth World Cup, Ronaldo was sidelined for most of April and May because of a muscle injury suffered in the Spanish league.

The Brazilian Soccer Confederation said Ronaldo -- who hasn't been talking much to the media recently -- was recovering from the respiratory infection and would practice normally on Friday afternoon.

In the video conference, the Brazilian president gave advice to captain Cafu, asking him "to take care" of the team's youngsters. He also said he was hoping Parreira would "give a chance" to Robinho, a reserve to Ronaldo and Adriano.

Silva said the national team was living a "magical moment," and that the expectations for a sixth title were "very high."

"We know that," Parreira said. "And we will be doing all we can to win (it)."

Silva wished luck to everyone, and said Brazil will stop again to watch them play, "including myself, I'll be seating in front of the television."

After playing Croatia in Berlin, the defending champion will face Australia on June 18 in Munich and Japan on June 22 in Dortmund.

The team has been training in the small town of Koenigstein, outside Frankfurt. Brazil's only public training session was held in nearby Offenbach on Thursday, and more than 22,000 fans showed up to watch the soccer stars.