2008: The Year of Cristiano Ronaldo

Post by Victoria Cochrane

At any time since Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Manchester United in August 2003, the £12million winger has never ever been far from the headlines. Producing his debut in the very first game of the 2003/04 season, in a comfortable four- win over Bolton, Ronaldo came off the bench to substitute Nicky Butt to turn into the first at any time Portuguese player to signify the Red Devils. From the raw expertise signed by Sir Alex Ferguson – right after getting handed more than by the then-Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier and practically being acquired by Arsene Wenger at Arsenal – Ronaldo has turned into 1 of the modern day day greats who is among the very finest in globe football. This declare has been verified by the fact that in 2008 Ronaldo obtained the Ballon d’Or, usually called the European Footballer of the Yr Award though, currently gamers from any nationality taking part in in any country can win the accolade. The prior yr Ronaldo had arrive 2nd to the Brazilian Kaka. Ronaldo grew to become the 3rd Portuguese global (becoming a member of Eusebio and Luis Figo) and the fourth Manchester United player (right after Denis Law, Bobby Charlton and George Greatest) to win the award. Fairly than go by a player’s performances more than the course of a time, the Ballon D’or is awarded to whoever is deemed to have been greatest above the program of a calendar yr. Ronaldo started 2008 scoring towards Aston Villa in the FA Cup before scoring his very first actually hat-trick, in the 6- demolition of Newcastle. The winger, or floating second striker as he was usually employed, scored 24 objectives between New Yr and the finish of the 2007/08 period. His goal against the Czech Republic aided his nationwide aspect achieve the quarter ultimate of the 2008 European Championships. An ankle damage delayed Ronaldo’s return to club football but he managed an additional 9 ambitions before the finish of the calendar yr, such as four in 4 days as he scored match-winning doubles versus West Ham United and Hull City. Thirty players had been nominated for the 2008 award, with 96 worldwide journalists voting for their best 5 options. Ronaldo arrived best with 446 points, followed by Barcelona’s Lionel Messi with 281 factors and Liverpool’s Fernando Torres with 179 points. Since then, nonetheless, Cristiano Ronaldo has been snubbed by his primary rival. When asked to identify his dream group of 2008, Messi neglected to choose Ronaldo as an alternative opting for a midfield of Javier Zanetti, Cesc Fabregas, Xavi and Andres Iniesta. Irrespective, Ronaldo remains extremely considerably in concentrate as getting 1 of the world’s finest and each transfer window brings rumours that clubs from across the continent are planning huge bids to pry him absent from Outdated Trafford.

About the Author

Victoria Cochrane writes for a digital marketing and advertising company. This article has been commissioned by a client of stated company. This article is not created to promote, but should be considered expert content.