CRISTIANO RONALDO

His match-winning goal in the second leg against Porto, a 40-yard strike, earned him the inaugural FIFA Puskás Award, presented by FIFA in recognition of the best goal of the year;[107] he later called it the best goal he had ever scored.[108] United advanced to the final in Rome,[109] where he made little impact in United's 2–0 defeat to Barcelona.[110] Ronaldo ended his time in England with nine trophies, as United claimed their third successive Premier League title and a Football League Cup.[111][112] He finished the campaign with 26 goals in all competitions, 16 goals fewer than the previous season, in four more appearances.[113] His final goal for Manchester United came on 10 May 2009 with a free kick in the Manchester derby at Old Trafford.[114]

Ahead of the 2009–10 season, Ronaldo joined Real Madrid for a world record transfer fee at the time, of £80 million (€94 million).[115] His contract, which ran until 2015, was worth €11 million per year and contained a €1 billion buy-out clause.[116] At least 80,000 fans attended his presentation at the Santiago Bernabéu, surpassing the 25-year record of 75,000 fans who had welcomed Diego Maradona at Napoli.[117] Since club captain Raúl already wore the number 7 (the number Ronaldo wore at Manchester United), Ronaldo received the number 9 shirt,[118] which was presented to him by former Madrid player Alfredo Di Stéfano.[119]

Ronaldo made his debut in La Liga on 29 August 2009, against Deportivo La Coruña, and scored from the penalty spot in Madrid's 3–2 home win.[120] He scored in each of his first four league fixtures with the club, the first Madrid player to do so.[121] His first Champions League goals for the club followed with two free kicks in the first group match against Zürich.[122] His strong start to the season, however, was interrupted when he suffered an ankle injury in October while on international duty, which kept him sidelined for seven weeks.[123][124] A week after his return, he received his first red card in Spain in a match against Almería.[125] Midway through the season, Ronaldo placed second in the running for the Ballon d'Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year award, behind Lionel Messi of Barcelona, Madrid's historic rivals. He finished the campaign with 33 goals in all competitions, including a hat-trick in a 4–1 win against Mallorca on 5 May 2010, his first in the Spanish competition.[126][127] His first season at Real Madrid ended trophyless.[128]

Following Raúl's departure, Ronaldo was handed the number 7 shirt for Real Madrid before the 2010–11 season.[129] His subsequent return to his Ballon d'Or-winning form was epitomised when, for the first time in his career, he scored four goals in a single match during a 6–1 rout against Racing Santander on 23 October.[130] His haul concluded a goalscoring run of six consecutive matches (three in La Liga, one in the Champions League, and two for Portugal) totalling 11 goals, the most he had scored in a single month. Ronaldo subsequently scored further hat-tricks against Athletic Bilbao, Levante, Villarreal, and Málaga.[131][132][133] Despite his performance, he did not make the podium for the inaugural FIFA Ballon d'Or at the end of 2010.[134]

During a historical series of four Clásicos against rivals Barcelona in April 2011, Ronaldo scored twice to equal his personal record of 42 goals in all competitions in a single season. Although he failed to find the net during Madrid's eventual elimination in the Champions League semi-finals, he equalised from the penalty spot in the return league game and scored the match-winning goal in the 103rd minute of the Copa del Rey final, winning his first trophy in Spain.[135][136] His two goals in the last match of the season, against Almería, made him the first player in La Liga to score 40 goals.[137] In addition to the Pichichi Trophy, Ronaldo consequently won the European Golden Shoe for a second time, becoming the first player to win the award in two different leagues.[138]

During the following campaign, the 2011–12 season, Ronaldo surpassed his previous goalscoring feats to achieve a new personal best of 60 goals across all competitions.[139] He regained a place on the FIFA Ballon d'Or podium, as runner-up to Messi, after scoring hat-tricks against Real Zaragoza, Rayo Vallecano, Málaga, Osasuna, and Sevilla, the last of which put Madrid on top of the league by the season's midway point.[140][141][142]

Ronaldo found greater team success in the league, as he helped Real Madrid win their first La Liga title in four years, with a record 100 points. Following a hat-trick against Levante, further increasing Madrid's lead over Barcelona,[143] he scored his 100th league goal for Madrid in a 5–1 win over Real Sociedad on 24 March 2012, a milestone he reached in just 92 matches across three seasons, breaking the previous club record held by Ferenc Puskás.[144] Another hat-trick in the Madrid derby against Atlético Madrid brought his total to 40 league goals, equalling his record of the previous season.[145] His final league goal of the campaign, against Mallorca, took his total to 46 goals, four short of the new record set by Messi,[146] and earned him the distinction of being the first player to score against all 19 opposition teams in a single season in La Liga.[147]

Ronaldo began the 2012–13 season by lifting the Supercopa de España, his third trophy in Spain. With a goal in each leg by the Portuguese, Madrid won the Spanish Super Cup on away goals following a 4–4 aggregate draw against Barcelona.[148] Although Ronaldo publicly commented that he was unhappy with a "professional issue" within the club, prompted by his refusal to celebrate his 150th goal for Madrid,[149] his goalscoring rate did not suffer. After netting a hat-trick, including two penalties, against Deportivo La Coruña, he scored his first hat-trick in the Champions League in a 4–1 victory over Ajax.[150] Four days later, he became the first player to score in six successive Clásicos when he hit a brace in a 2–2 draw at Camp Nou.[151] His performances in 2012 again saw Ronaldo voted second in the running for the FIFA Ballon d'Or, finishing runner-up to four-time winner Messi.[152]

Following the 2012–13 winter break, Ronaldo captained Real Madrid for the first time in an official match, scoring a brace to lift 10-man Madrid to a 4–3 victory over Real Sociedad on 6 January.[153] He subsequently became the first non-Spanish player in 60 years to captain Madrid in El Clásico on 30 January, a match which also marked his 500th club appearance.[154] Three days prior, he had scored his 300th club goal as part of a perfect hat-trick against Getafe.[155] He scored his 200th goal for Real Madrid on 8 May in a 6–2 win against Málaga, reaching the landmark in 197 games.[156] He helped Madrid reach the Copa del Rey final by scoring twice in El Clásico, which marked the sixth successive match at Camp Nou in which he had scored,[157] a Real Madrid record.[148] In the final, he headed the opening goal of an eventual 2–1 defeat to Atlético Madrid, but was shown a red card for violent conduct.[158] In the first knockout round of the Champions League, Ronaldo faced his former club Manchester United for the first time. After scoring the equaliser in a 1–1 draw at the Santiago Bernabéu,[159] he scored the match-winning goal in a 2–1 victory at Old Trafford, his first return to his former home ground.[160] He did not celebrate scoring against his former club as a mark of respect.[161] After scoring three goals against Galatasaray in the quarters, he scored Madrid's only goal in the 4–1 away defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the semi-finals, but failed to increase his side's 2–0 victory in the second leg, as they were eliminated at the semi-final stage for the third consecutive year.[162]

At the start of the 2013–14 season, Ronaldo signed a new contract that extended his stay by three years to 2018, with a salary of €17 million net, making him briefly the highest-paid player in football.[163] He was joined at the club by winger Gareth Bale, whose world record transfer fee of €100 million surpassed the fee Madrid had paid for Ronaldo four years prior.[164] Together with striker Karim Benzema, they formed an attacking trio popularly dubbed "BBC", an acronym of Bale, Benzema, and Cristiano, and a play off the name of the public service broadcaster.[165] By late November, Ronaldo had scored 32 goals from 22 matches for both club and country, including hat-tricks against Galatasaray, Sevilla, Real Sociedad, Northern Ireland, and Sweden.[166][167][168] He ended 2013 with 69 goals in 59 appearances, his highest year-end goal tally.[169] He received the FIFA Ballon d'Or, an amalgamation of the Ballon d'Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year award, for the first time in his career.[170]

Concurrently with his individual achievements, Ronaldo enjoyed his greatest team success in Spain to date, as he helped Real Madrid win La Décima, their tenth European Cup. His goal in a 3–0 home win over Borussia Dortmund (his 100th Champions League match) took his total for the season to 14 goals, equalling the record Messi had set two years before.[171] After hitting a brace in a 4–0 defeat of Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena,[172] he scored from the penalty spot in the 120th minute of the 4–1 final victory over Atlético Madrid, becoming the first player to score in two European Cup finals for two different winning teams.[173] His overall performance in the final was subdued as a result of patellar tendinitis and related hamstring problems, which had plagued him in the last months of the campaign. Ronaldo played the final against medical advice, later commenting: "In your life you do not win without sacrifices and you must take risks."[174] As the Champions League top goalscorer for the third time, with a record 17 goals,[175] he was named the UEFA Best Player in Europe.[176]

In the Copa del Rey, Ronaldo helped Madrid reach the final by scoring two penalties against Atlético Madrid at the Vicente Calderón,[177] the first of which meant he had now scored in every single minute of a 90-minute football match.[178] His continued issues with his knee and thigh caused him to miss the final, where Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 2–1 to claim the trophy.[179] Ronaldo scored 31 goals in 30 league games, which earned him the Pichichi and the European Golden Shoe, receiving the latter award jointly with Liverpool striker Luis Suárez.[180] Among his haul was his 400th career goal, in 653 appearances for club and country, which came with a brace against Celta Vigo on 6 January; he dedicated his goals to compatriot Eusébio, who had died two days before.[181] A last-minute, back-heeled volley scored against Valencia on 4 May (his 50th goal in all competitions) was recognised as the best goal of the season by the Liga de Fútbol Profesional,[182] which additionally named Ronaldo the Best Player in La Liga.[183]

During the next campaign, the 2014–15 season, Ronaldo set a new personal best of 61 goals in all competitions, starting with both goals in Real Madrid's 2–0 victory over Sevilla in the UEFA Super Cup.[184] He subsequently achieved his best-ever goalscoring start to a league campaign, with a record 15 goals in the first eight rounds of La Liga.[185] His record 23rd hat-trick in La Liga, scored against Celta Vigo on 6 December, made him the fastest player to reach 200 goals in the Spanish league, as he reached the milestone in only his 178th game.[185][186] After lifting the FIFA Club World Cup with Madrid in Morocco, and becoming the joint-top assist provider of the competition alongside Toni Kroos,[187] Ronaldo received a second successive FIFA Ballon d'Or,[188] joining Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini, and Marco van Basten as a three-time Ballon d'Or winner.[189]

Madrid finished in second-place in La Liga in the 2014–15 season and exited at the semi-final stage in the Champions League.[190] In the latter competition, Ronaldo extended his run of scoring away to a record 12 matches with his strike in a 2–0 win against Schalke 04.[191] He scored both of his side's goals in the semi-finals against Juventus, where Madrid were eliminated 2–3 on aggregate.[192] With 10 goals, he finished the campaign as top scorer for a third consecutive season, alongside Messi and Neymar.[193] In La Liga, for the first time in his career he scored five goals in one game, including an eight-minute hat-trick, in a 9–1 rout of Granada on 5 April.[194] His 300th goal for his club followed three days later in a 2–0 win against Rayo Vallecano.[195] Subsequent hat-tricks against Sevilla, Espanyol, and Getafe took his number of hat-tricks for Real Madrid to 31, surpassing Di Stéfano's club record of 28.[184] He finished the season with 48 goals, winning a second consecutive Pichichi and the European Golden Shoe for a record fourth time.[184]

At the start of his seventh season at Real Madrid, the 2015–16 campaign, Ronaldo became the club's all-time top scorer, first in the league and then in all competitions. His five-goal haul in a 6–0 away win over Espanyol on 12 September took his tally in La Liga to 230 goals in 203 games, surpassing the club's previous recordholder, Raúl.[196] A month later, on 17 October, he again surpassed Raúl when he scored the second goal in a 3–0 defeat of Levante at the Bernabéu to take his overall total for the club to 324 goals.[note 4] Ronaldo also became the all-time top scorer in the Champions League with a hat-trick in the first group match against Shakhtar Donetsk, having finished the previous season level with Messi on 77 goals.[198] Two goals against Malmö FF in a 2–0 away win on 30 September saw him reach the milestone of 500 career goals for both club and country.[199] He subsequently became the first player to score double figures in the competition's group stage, setting the record at 11 goals, including another four-goal haul against Malmö.[200]

Ronaldo's four goals in a 7–1 home win over Celta de Vigo on 5 March 2016 took his total to 252 goals in La Liga, becoming the competition's second-highest scorer in history behind Messi.[201] He scored a hat-trick against VfL Wolfsburg to send his club into the Champions League semi-finals.[202] The treble took his tally in the competition to 16 goals, making him the top scorer for the fourth consecutive season, and the fifth overall.[203] Suffering apparent fitness issues, Ronaldo gave a poorly-received performance in the final against Atlético Madrid, in a repeat of the 2014 final, though his penalty in the subsequent shoot-out secured La Undécima, Madrid's 11th victory.[204] For the sixth successive year, he ended the season having scored more than 50 goals across all competitions.[204] For his efforts during the season, he received the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award for a second time.[205]

Ronaldo missed Real Madrid's first three matches of the 2016–17 season, including the 2016 UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla, as he continued to rehabilitate the knee injury he suffered against France in the final of Euro 2016.[206] On 15 September, he did not celebrate his late free kick equaliser against Sporting CP in the Champions League, with Ronaldo stating post match, "they made me who I am."[207] On 7 November, his contract was updated for the second time and extended by three years to 2021.[208] On 19 November, he scored a hat-trick in a 3–0 away win against Atlético Madrid, making him the all-time top scorer in the Madrid derby with 18 goals.[209] On 15 December, Ronaldo scored his 500th club career goal in the 2–0 victory over Club América in the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup.[210] He then scored a hat-trick in the 4–2 win over Japanese club Kashima Antlers in the final.[211] Ronaldo finished the tournament as top scorer with four goals and was also named player of the tournament.[212] He won the Ballon d'Or for a fourth time and the inaugural Best FIFA Men's Player, a revival of the former FIFA World Player of the Year, largely owing to his success with Portugal in winning Euro 2016.[213]

In the 2016–17 UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich in April, Ronaldo scored both goals in a 2–1 away win which saw him make history in becoming the first player to reach 100 goals in UEFA club competition.[214] In the second leg of the quarter-finals, Ronaldo scored a 'perfect' hat-trick and reached his 100th UEFA Champions League goal, becoming the first player to do so as Real Madrid again defeated Bayern 4–2 after extra-time.[215] On 2 May, Ronaldo scored another hat-trick as Real Madrid defeated Atlético Madrid 3–0 in the Champions League semi-final first leg. On 17 May, Ronaldo overtook Jimmy Greaves as the all-time top scorer in the top five European leagues, scoring twice against Celta de Vigo.[216] He finished the season with 42 goals in all competitions as he helped Madrid to win their first La Liga title since 2012.[217] In the 2017 Champions League final, Ronaldo scored two goals in the victory against Juventus and became the top goalscorer for the fifth-straight season, and sixth overall, with 12 goals, while also becoming the first player to score in three finals in the Champions League era as well as reaching his 600th senior career goal.[218] Madrid also became the first team to win back-to-back finals in the Champions League era.[219]

At the start of the 2017–18 season, Ronaldo scored Madrid's second goal in a 3–1 Supercopa de España first-leg victory over Barcelona at Camp Nou.[220] On 23 October, his performances in the first half of 2017 saw him claim his fifth FIFA Player of the Year award by receiving The Best FIFA Men's Player award for the second consecutive year.[221] On 6 December, he became the first player to score in all six Champions League group stage matches with a curling strike at home to Borussia Dortmund.[222] A day later, Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or for a fifth time, receiving the award on the Eiffel Tower in Paris.[223] On 16 December he scored a free kick winner as Madrid won their second FIFA Club World Cup title in a row by beating Gremio in the final.[224] On 3 March 2018, he scored two goals in a 3–1 home win over Getafe, his first being his 300th La Liga goal in his 286th La Liga appearance, making him the fastest player to reach this landmark and only the second player to do so after Messi.[225] On 18 March, he reached his 50th career hat-trick, scoring four goals in a 6–3 win against Girona.[226]

On 3 April, Ronaldo scored the first two goals in a 3–0 away win against Juventus in the quarter-finals of the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League, with his second goal being an acrobatic bicycle kick.[227] Described as a "PlayStation goal" by Juventus defender Andrea Barzagli, with Ronaldo's foot approximately 7 ft 7 in (2.31 m) off the ground, it garnered him a standing ovation from the opposing fans in the stadium, as well as a plethora of plaudits from peers, pundits and coaches.[228][229] On 11 April, he scored the goal Real Madrid needed to advance to the semi-final, in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final at home to Juventus, from a 98th-minute injury time penalty in a 3–1 defeat, with an overall 4–3 aggregate win.[230] It was also his tenth goal against Juventus, a Champions League record against a single club.[231] In the final of the tournament, on 26 May, Real Madrid defeated Liverpool 3–1, winning Ronaldo his fifth Champions League title as he became the first player to win the trophy five times.[232] He finished as the top scorer of the tournament for the sixth consecutive season, ending the campaign with 15 goals.[233] After the final, Ronaldo referred to his time with the Champions League winners in the past tense, sparking speculation that he could leave Real Madrid.[234]