In 2007 a man was robbed off his right of earning the recognition he deserves. Cristiano Ronaldo, probably the most fantastic footballer ever comes out of Europe after Johan Cruyff was not named the world footballer of the year by FIFA. Not only he was not named, he came third after Lionel Messi whose biggest contribution is only mimicking some Maradona’s goals but done and won sh*t on the pitch with Barcelona.

With all due respect to the brilliant Brazilian Kaka, seriously, Ronaldo played more consistently in a harder and tougher league unlike the corrupted and ruined Serie-A. People said that FIFA decision was justified since Kaka helped AC Milan knocked out Manchester United in the European Champions League, well if it’s that the case, why was it in 1999, when a certain David Beckham owned everyone on the pitch including a first round knocked out Barcelona, he was not named the FIFA player of the Year but they gave it to Rivaldo instead ? Conclusion, everyone hates our guts but our fans and nobody wanna see a Red Devil wins the FIFA player of the Year award. But then again, who gives a rat’s ass about some sh*tty award anyway, everybody who knows, plays, lives and breathes football knows that Cristiano Ronaldo was the “Real Footballer of the Year”…

Named after the American President, Ronald Reagan, Cristiano Ronaldo began kicking a ball when he was three. Growing up to be a SL Benfica fan, Ronaldo joined rival Sporting Lisbon at the beginning of his pro-career. It was not long however for a talented Ronaldo to catch the attention of football scouts from all over the world. He was first spotted by Sir Alex Ferguson in 2003, when he helped Sporting Lisbon beat Manchester United 3-1 in a friendly match. Ronaldo was so impressive on both wings, that it was the Manchester United players themselves who suggested to Alex Ferguson to put a transfer bid on the young prodigy.

Soon after Ronaldo arrived at Old Trafford, replacing David Beckham, a Manchester United legend that moved to Real Madrid. Not only that, he was also passed on the “Number 7” jersey, unlike in any other football club, “7” is a magical number in Manchester United, it was worn by legends from the generations of George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and David Beckham. It was an honour but also a burden, but a young Cristiano Ronaldo promised that he will live up to the expectations.

Ronaldo made his debut against Bolton Wanderers, coming in as a substitute, and winning a penalty in what to be a 4-1 Manchester United win. Despite the fact that Ronaldo started well on his early stint with the club, it was not always an easy ride for him in England.

After a few months, Ronaldo was often criticized for diving by the opposing fans and the media. Not only that, he was also criticized by the United fans themselves for dribbling too much and losing the ball too often. It was times like this that could make or break a young player. Fortunately, Ronaldo found good mentoring and schooling in the form of Roy Keane, Gary Neville and Sir Alex Ferguson. It was like a “Good Cop, Bad Cop” thing. Both captains, Keane and Gary were the bad cops, they always yelled at him, hacked him in matches, while Fergie was like the father figure for Ronaldo. One time, Ronaldo had a brief tussle with striker Ruud van Nistelrooy in the training ground, in another club, when a young player goes up to a senior like Ronaldo did, it was the end for sure, but Fergie stood by him, warned him for his mistakes and made him learn from that.

He was not a really loveable character for the England public as well, tough they deeply however admit and respect his skill on the pitch. Especially after he was involved in an incident with team-mate Wayne Rooney in the 2006 World Cup. It was believed that Rooney’s sending off happened due to the provocations made by Ronaldo to the referee. After the incident, Ronaldo was so close in moving out to Real Madrid after the England press and public continued to bash at him at every chance they got.

But after the new season started, both Rooney and Ronaldo came into a level terms, showing their newly developed partnership on the pitch. Their duo was known as the “Roo-Ro” duo. And with their youthful energy and their development as footballers, they became the most exciting young pairings in European football. Together, they finally brought the Premier League title back to Old Trafford after 4 years. Not only that, both the English press and public had to swallow their tongue and give Ronaldo the PFA Player of the Year, PFA Young Player of the Year, and PFA Fans’ Player of the Year award, making him the only player in English football history to reach such feats and honors as an individual.

In the 2007/2008 season, Ronaldo probably played the game of his life. He topped the EPL goalscorer with 31 goals, and he scored an unbelievable 41 goals in all competitions playing mostly as a winger. It's no surprise that he retained both the EPL Players' Player of the Year and Football Writers' Player of the Year Award.

Ronaldo also played a major part in Manchester United double winning season both in the EPL and in the European Champions League. He scored a goal in the ECL Final against Chelsea in Moscow. Despite the fact that he missed the penalty in the shoot-out, it is without a doubt that Ronaldo's goal helped Manchester United, without it, Manchester United would have been lost in the first place anyway.

Only at his early 20’s, only the future holds what will happen next for Cristiano Ronaldo. With a talent like him, winning a championship like the World Cup, European Cup or any other high competitions is more than likely, either for Manchester United or the Portugal National team.

 

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