Cristiano Ronaldo v FC Porto: A Portuguese against his own people

Tonight is mission impossible for European Champions Manchester United… It’s a kill or be killed and a do or die affair. The Red Devils need to avoid the fate of English teams on the ground of the Dragons, and everyone’s eyes are on one man under no other name but Cristiano Ronaldo to deliver.

Ferguson to Ronaldo: Correct your guilt.
The 67-year-old Scot who is dreaming of clinching two more Champions League trophies before retiring in 2010 is getting more severe over his team’s performance after managing a disappointing 2-2 draw at Old Trafford.

Ferguson reprimanded Cristiano Ronaldo a few days ago for his costly mistake against Porto last week which led to Rodriguez’s 4th minute opener; now the manager demands some miracles from the United squad and from the World Player of the Year especially.

“At this stage of the season, with every game so big, you expect your key players to go into overdrive,” Ferguson stated.

“Of course we’ve got the players who can win the game for us. Match-winners who can rise to the big occasion, that’s really important.”

Cristiano Ronaldo will have a point to prove tonight as he faces the prospect of crushing out of Europe’s most prestigious competition – the UEFA Champions League. The reigning UEFA Top scorer found the net only once in Europe this season and he’s yet to torture his opponents with instant killers.

FC Porto and Cristiano Ronaldo, two great enemies
The Estadio do Dragao is such a significant venue for former Sporting Lisbon Star Cristiano Ronaldo!
This is where the Portuguese number 7 was booed off and jeered by the supporters of Sporting Lisbon’s rivals FC Porto in 2004. The pressure on Ronaldo was so intense that he had to be substituted; and his angry gesture as he reacted to the provoking crowd didn’t go unseen by UEFA’s officials who then handed him a one-match ban. Manchester United eventually got booted out of the competition that same night.

Many years have gone by since then, and the grown kid from the Madeira Island is now the captain of the Portuguese national team and the European and World Player of the Year.

The talismanic number 7 and his English club stand at the wrong side of a 2-2 first leg draw, so tonight’s game promises to be nothing less than a fierce battle.

After suffering a humiliating night at the Estadio do Dragao as a 19-year-old and after cheaply giving the ball away eight days ago (which was the source of Rodriguez’s opener), the pressure is on Cristiano Ronaldo to perform as a true World’s Best Player and ultimately help his teammates to overcome the Dragons on their own territory.

The bells of woes are ringing for the Red Devils to deliver…

Thierry Henri confession: Ronaldo is better than Messi

The long-running if not boring Ronaldo v Messidebate has filled forums with a lot of argument and created so much war between the two groups of supporters.

Barcelona’s Argentine Star Lionel Messi definitely looks determine to steal his rival’s pride and titles this season.The number 10 is very much on course to clinching the UEFA Top scorer of the year award which Ronaldo won last year as much as he is on course to help his club achieve a treble this season.

However, teammate Thierry Henri astonishingly revealed his respect for the “arrogant” Cristiano Ronaldo, placing him above his own friend and colleague Lionel Messi.

In an interview with Record, the former English Premiership player explained his opinion:

“First of all, you have to take into account that Leo [Messi] and Cristiano Ronaldo are different players,”

“For sure they can play on any position from the midfield up, they both have extraordinary technique, but they are different,” Henry stated.

“And, if Messi is scoring more goals nowadays, Ronaldo is a player that has scored more and topped the scoring charts last season.

“Then, the greatness of a player is measured by the titles he has helped his team conquer. Therefore, I have to recognise that Cristiano Ronaldo is better than Leo Messi.”

The French striker continued:

“When Messi is playing well, he can do things that no-one else can.

“I honestly understand why there are those who compare him to Maradona but I repeat: at least right now, Cristiano Ronaldo is the best. In the future… we will see.”

Both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are still in the Champions League but the fate of their respective team is completely different. While Barcelona have analytically sealed their place in the semi-finals with a 4-0 first leg victory over Bayern Munich, Cristiano Ronaldo’s Manchester United have some job to do when they meet FC Porto at the Estadio do Dragao tomorrow.

The Red Devils will be the 13th English side to play the Portuguese Champions in Porto and Cristiano Ronaldo is confident that the team will break the record by being the first English club to defeat the Dragaos in their own backyard at last.

Speaking to Fox Sports, the World Player of the Year boldly declared:

“We will win because Manchester United are the better team. I feel good and I’m ready,”

“I think we have a better team than Porto but we have to respect them. I want to finish the season by winning the Premier League, FA Cup and the Champions League. My team-mates are thinking like me.”

Cristiano Ronaldo’s daring dream of winning the quadruple remains a possibility… at least for now.

The reality of it could help Cristiano Ronaldo beat Lionel Messi once again to retain his individual trophies.

Cristiano Ronaldo forever!!!

Usain Bolt invited by Cristiano Ronaldo for dinner in Madrid

Two of the world’s greatest sports icons are also very good friends. Cristiano Ronaldo and Usain Bolt had dinner together in the Spanish capital after Real Madrid’s 3-2 La Liga victory over Deportivo La Coruna.

The 100 and 200 IAAF World Championship gold medalist was invited by Cristiano Ronaldo to share the rest of the evening with his family in his brand new Real Madrid mansion.

Speaking at a press conference on Sunday morning, the Jamaican described that moment as “wonderful” and “heartfelt”.

Usain Bolt honestly tipped himself as the champion, saying:

“Definitely I think I can do that. I don’t think Cristiano can beat me. I’m the fastest man in the world so I can do that.”

Cristiano Ronaldo, the irreplaceable winking hero

Out of his six years at Old Trafford, Cristiano Ronaldo spent three in the spotlight. After the infamous incident in the 2006 World Cup involving him and Wayne Rooney, critics and boos became part of Ronaldo’s professional and private lives.

The “Winking hero” suddenly transformed into England’s number one most hated personality. While a vast majority of football fans took pleasure in threatening him to move from Manchester United and from the country as well, most analysts tipped Ronaldo to suffer career nightmares whereas Rooney would excel.

But these predictions never came true. Cristiano Ronaldo received the backing of Alex Ferguson; the grown
kid from Madeira soon became Manchester United’s most impressive player – a real ace.

Cristiano Ronaldo gained more confidence and always went out to prove his critics wrong although they never seemed to shut up. The Portuguese winger visibly played under pressure – this pressure that was created by anti-Ronaldo supporters and by the fact that he had to play for a team that was NOT his childhood dream club.

Despite these problems, Cristiano Ronaldo battled hard to defend his worth by powering Manchester United to their first league title in three years. The winger netted 23 goals (17 in the English Premier League) and became Manchester United’s top scorer at the end of the 2006/2007 season.

Some called his achievement “luck” and once again predicted that he wouldn’t be able to match the standard that he had set.

Well, Cristiano Ronaldo even went steps further to break his own record. The following season, he netted 42 goals in all competition which helped Manchester United to land the Champions League and the English Premier League titles.

Last year, Ronaldo’s season was tarnished by the transfer saga and by an ankle operation which saw him miss the start of Manchester United’s campaign.

Either way, Cristiano Ronaldo’s 2008/2009 season can be marked by so many memorable things: his dazzling performance in Japan that helped the Red Devils to lift the Fifa World Club Cup trophy, his wonder goal against Porto FC that fired Manchester United to the semi-finals of the Champions League, his brace against Arsenal in Europe, his vital equalizer against Aston Villa, and the list goes on…

During that final year at Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo also scored his 100th goal for the club with a 30-yard free-kick against Stoke City. One person who keeps reflecting on Cristiano Ronaldo’s influence in Manchester is Chelsea’s Frank Lampard.

“You don’t replace him [Cristiano Ronaldo], apart from with Messi. He [Messi] is probably the only player you could do it with.

“With Ronaldo, the amount of goals he scores, the amount of times you flicked on the telly and saw he had scored and they had won 1-0 or 2-0.

“It is very difficult to replace him. I saw Ferguson say that himself, and I don’t think he will look to replace him.”

Cristiano Ronaldo left Manchester United and his goals are now part of the past. The “bad boy” knew how to blind defenders and punish them instantly with his pace and his mesmerizing dancing touches. He brought pride to the Red Devils all over the world with his particular skill on the ball. Cristiano Ronaldo was essential to Manchester United’s success in the 21st century, and that, surely, is a fact.

He seemed to play with his heart and mind despite the fact that he initially warned Alex Ferguson that Manchester and England were not part of his childhood dreams. The Red Devils shaped him into the world’s best footballer and in return, he performed all his tricks, flicks, and everything that personified him as the grown kid from Madeira.

As much as Manchester United may struggle to cop without Ronaldo, they may also find their way through to success again.

Michael Owen succeeds to Cristiano Ronaldo as Manchester United’s number 7 but the mesmerizing effect that the Portuguese had IS and will always be unique. As the proverb says, you must be either better or worse than a person [than Ronaldo]. As much as everyone is unique, you cannot equal someone in certain terms.

Cristiano Ronaldo, the “Winking Hero”, is forever irreplaceable.

Did Cristiano Ronaldo really had flu?

Less than 12 hours after Portugal’s game against Liechtenstein, Cristiano Ronaldo was seen training for Real Madrid. The Spanish Giants had released a statement to the Portuguese Football Association preventing Cristiano Ronaldo from joing his national team. According to Real Madrid, the 24-year-old was suffering from flu.

While some may believe the story, many will accept it with raised eyebrows. Anyway, today’s news was that Ronaldo attended training for Real Madrid.

The World Player of the Year was also joined by Marcelo, Sergio Ramos, Alvaro Negredo, and his former teammate at Manchester United Ruud Van Nilsterooy. Reports indicates that all these players are currently on Real Madrid’s injury list while they look to recover completely.

AS reported that Ronaldo showed some signs of weakness during training. The man whose legs are priced 100 million euros also trained alone with the ball. But was all that just theatrics? It’s easy to think that Real Madrid will do everything in their power to keep the legs of their superstar safe – not only before the start of the season, but also throughout the campaign.

Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to play for RealMadrid in their next pre-season match on August 19.

Ronaldo is phenomenal, normal, humble – Raul Albiol

The World Player of the Year and the Ballon d’Or titleholder Cristiano Ronaldo is a popular personality in football. Millions of fans adore him for his dazzling skills on the pitch and his attractive look characterized by his sun-tanned skin and his hairstyle.

For many though, the 24-year-old Portuguese winger is the portrait of arrogance, selfishness, immaturity, and incompleteness. Cristiano Ronaldo is certainly the number one footballer to count so many anti-supporters around the world who love to hate him.

Either way, Ronaldo still receives a lot of attention from the media and from a large part of enthusiast people who can’t wait to see him play competitive football for Los Blancos.

Ahead of the new season, predictions over Ronaldo’s performance for Real Madrid in La Liga, the Champions League, and the Copa del Rey are vibrant in the atmosphere.

One man who is well aware of the attention that Cristiano Ronaldo attracts is Liverpool’s ex-defender Raul Albiol. He said:

“Everyone is curious to know [about Ronaldo].”

The Spanish international, who is one player among the bunch of stars that Florentino Perez signed this summer, then gave his own description of Real Madrid’s 94 million euro signing. The defender simply declared:

“He [Cristiano Ronaldo] is a phenomenal player and it is a pleasure to know him because he is a normal guy, humble and a worker.”

Contradictorily to what anti-Ronaldo fans predicted, Cristiano Ronaldo looks welcomed in the Spanish club. Under new coach Manuel Pellegrini, the atmosphere within the players of Real Madrid seems to be more harmonious than it was last season, despite the hierarchy that exists in the squad in terms of wages.

Is Cristiano Ronaldo really an unsupportable lad as Barcelona’s Xavi Hernandez and some other people think?

Cristiano Ronaldo: It’s easy to be me.

“There is only one Ronaldo”; Cristiano Ronaldo fans are proud to chant this popular line. For anti-Ronaldo supporters, this is more than an insult.

The former iconic number 7 superstar now wears the number 9 jersey in Real Madrid, with his name ‘Ronaldo’ written at the back. Coincidently, two years after the Brazilian Ronaldo left the talismanic number 9 shirt hanging, another man with the same name is carrying it – Cristiano Ronaldo.

After making the headlines with his 94 million Euros move from Old Trafford to the Santiago Bernabeu, Cristiano Ronaldo hasn’t stop being at the centre of attraction. The World Player of the Year is cleary the people’s favorite in Madrid. The 24-year-old, who was often in the limelight in his time at Manchester is being even more spotlighted these days.

Ronaldo, who was recently asked about his new life where every move is under the spotlight, declared:

“It’s very easy to be Ronaldo. I am not changing my lifestyle. I like being Ronaldo.”

Many predicted that Ronaldo’s inclusion in Real Madrid’s squad was going to provoke tension in the dressing room, not only because of his character but also because of his astronomical wages. However, things do not seem to go that way.

On the pitch, the Portugal captain looks equal to his teammates and his relationship with Raul appears to be positive.