While Cristiano Ronaldo might be the most famous footballer in the world today, to many, there remains only one true Ronaldo: the Brazilian R9.
Today, he turns 48 and there is no better way for us to honour an iconic player than to remind everyone of just how truly amazing he was.
By the time Ronaldo was 21, he had already broke the world-record transfer fee twice, first in a 1996 move from PSV to Barcelona, and then in a switch to Inter the following summer.
It was in Serie A that he became known as “Il Fenomeno”, and it’s not hard to see why.
After his debut season in Italy, he was at the peak of his powers, but terrible misfortune hit him on a consistent basis from the day of the 1998 World Cup final to the next tournament four years later, with injuries and illness almost ending his career.
It would have for mere mortals, but Ronaldo was something we had not seen before, and returned to the pinnacle of the sport, scoring eight times as Brazil won their fifth World Cup. To cap off his all-time comeback, he also picked up his third World Player of the Year in 2002.
It soon became clear he would become Real Madrid’s latest Galáctico, and he duly made the move to the Bernabéu following the tournament in Japan and South Korea.
Ronaldo’s time in the Spanish capital saw him hit 104 goals in just 177 appearances, but no performance captured the attention like that night at Old Trafford in April 2003.
The wonder that was Ronaldo was such that the Manchester United fans simply applauded his genius at one point, and rightly so.
There hasn’t been a player like him since, and might never be!
Source Agencies
