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Cristiano Ronaldo Profile
Name: Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro
Birth date: February 5, 1985
Birthplace: Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
Height: 184cm
Playing position: Left/right winger, striker
First Club: Sporting Lisbon
Career debut: 1999 vs Moreirense
Current club: Manchester United
International team: Portugal
International debut: August 20, 2003 vs Kazakhstan
Cristiano Ronaldo Biography
Cristiano Ronaldo started playing competitive football at 8-year-old
for amateur club Andorinha. Ronaldo was then signed by local team CD
Nacional at the age of 10 before moving to one of Portugal’s largest
football clubs, Sporting Lisbon in 1996.
Cristiano Ronaldo trained in the youth team before playing his first
senior game for Sporting in 1999 against Moreirense, and scored a
double on his debut.
Cristiano Ronaldo played for Portugal’s youth side in the UEFA U-17
Championships and drew attention internationally. Liverpool under
manager Gérard Houllier back then was reported interested in signing
Ronaldo, but it was Manchester United that made the move in 2003 to
fill the void of departed David Beckham.
Ronaldo’s signature came after Sporting Lisbon beat Manchester
United 3–1 in a friendly; and on the way back to England the United
players spoke enthusiastically about the young winger and suggested
manager Sir Alex Ferguson to secure his signature, which they did.
Cristiano Ronaldo made his memorable debut for Manchester United as
a substitute against Bolton. His 30 minutes performances created hype
with United fans and the English media with his dazzling dribbles.
His first 2 seasons at United received mixed reviews; despite
praised for his skills, Ronaldo was often being criticized for lack of
consistency and poor decision making on the field. However his
consistency level has been greatly improved in 2006/2007 season, which
saw him becoming one of the best player in EPL.
Cristiano Ronaldo made his senior debut for Portugal shortly after
being signed by United, in a match against Kazakhstan in August 2003.
He has become one of the key players for Portugal since then.
The controversial moment of Ronaldo’s career was in World Cup 2006,
where he was alleged to influence referee to send off his Manchester
United team mate, England striker Wayne Rooney in their quarter finals
clash.
Ronaldo was being used as the scapegoat for England’s defeat in the
World Cup and the hatred towards him had prompted his intention to
leave England and Manchester United. In the end United managed to keep
him; and Ronaldo played his best season so far in the Premiership
against all odds.
Ronaldo won both the PFA Player and Young Player of the Year Award
in 2007; he was the first player since 1977 to bag the double in the
same season. Ronaldo was also voted Footballer of the Year by the
Football Writers’ Association the same year.
Ronaldo’s performance was crucial to help Manchester United securing
their first Premiership title in 4 years in the 2006/2007 season.
Ronaldo was the top 3 finalists for both the FIFA World Player of
the Year and European Player of the Year awards in 2007. The eventual
winner for the awards was AC Milan’s Brazilian playmaker, Kaka.
At the age of 22, Cristiano Ronaldo has already been recognized as a
world class player. With continuous improvement and experience, there’s
no doubt that he is going to be
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