Vágner Love

Vágner Love playing for CSKA Moscow
Personal information
Full name	Vágner Silva de Souza
Date of birth	(1984-06-11) 11 June 1984 (age 28)
Place of birth	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Height	1.72 m (5 ft 7 1⁄2 in)[1]
Playing position	Striker
Club information
Current club	Flamengo
Number	99
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2002–2004	Palmeiras[2]	42	(27)
2004–2011	CSKA Moscow[2]	158	(79)
2009	→ Palmeiras (loan)[2]	12	(5)
2010	→ Flamengo (loan)	5	(4)
2012–	Flamengo	2	(2)
National team‡
2003	Brazil U20	5	(4)
2004–	Brazil	21	(5)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of June 1, 2012. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of June 1, 2012

Vágner Silva de Souza (born 11 June 1984 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), commonly known as Vágner Love, is a Brazilian football striker who plays for Flamengo.

Club career[link]

Palmeiras[link]

Vágner Love started his career with Palmeiras. In the 2003 season he helped them to return to the Brazilian Série A, the national First division.

CSKA Moscow[link]

Vágner Love playing for CSKA Moscow

He was then bought by CSKA Moscow.In the summer of 2004, prior to their Champions League campaign. For over a year after his arrival at CSKA Moscow, rumours kept appearing that he did not want to stay in Moscow, and a transfer to Corinthians in particular was hinted at numerous times. However, these rumours subsided and Vágner mentioned a number of times that he was fully committed to his contract and is looking forward to completing its full tenure.

He scored the final goal that sealed CSKA's 3–1 victory in the 2005 UEFA Cup Final over Sporting Clube de Portugal at the Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon. Additionally to this UEFA Cup final, he has gone on to win the Russian Premier League title and Russian Cup in 2005, 2008, and the Russian Super Cup in 2006.

He became the top scorer in the Russian Premier League 2008, and the top scorer of the 2008–09 UEFA Cup, with 11 goals in eight games.^[3]

Return to Palmeiras[link]

On 28 August 2009, following a run of poor form for CSKA Moscow, Vágner Love was signed by his former club Palmeiras on a one-year loan deal until 31 July 2010.^[4] CSKA press spokesman Sergei Aksenov claimed that Vágner Love left Russia due to "urgent family problems demand(ing) his presence at home in Brazil".^[5][6]

Love had a respectable return of 5 goals in 12 games for Palmeiras, but the loan spell was to be short lived. After publicly stating his concern over his safety at Palmeiras due to off-field altercations with fans, as well as his desire to play for his childhood team Flamengo, Vágner Love's loan contract with Palmeiras was ended early on 14 January 2010.^[7]

Flamengo[link]

On 15 January 2010, the day after his loan was terminated with Palmeiras, Love officially signed a loan deal with reigning Brazilian champions Flamengo lasting until July 2010.^[8][9] He made his Flamengo debut against Bangu in the Campeonato Carioca on 23 January 2010, scoring 2 goals. Vágner performed very well playing for Flamengo; he went on to score 23 goals in 26 matches. His successful partnership with Adriano Leite Ribeiro at Flamengo's offensive end was called by fans "Império do Amor", or "The Love Empire", in reference to Adriano's nickname "The Emperor" and Vágner's artistic surname. The presence of midfielder Dejan Petkovic in Flamengo's roster made supporters start the year with high spectations -- it was widely believed that the Serbian's passing and free-kick abilities, coupled with Adriano's and Vagner's prolific scoring would produce a top team. However, with Adriano struggling to keep an athlete's BMI and Petkovic's legs growing old (he was already 37 then), the team failed to advance past the round-of-16 in 2010's Copa Libertadores da América^[10]. Shortly after, Adriano revealed he wanted to try playing in Italy again^[11], and Flamengo couldn't convince CSKA to extend Vágner's loan, thus dismantling the previously promising "Love Empire".^[12].

Return to CSKA[link]

In the first match after Love's return to CSKA, on 1 August 2010 he scored in injury-time to give CSKA the 2–1 win against Moscow rivals Spartak.

Return to Flamengo[link]

On 25 January 2012, Love officially signed his transfer to Flamengo for approximately $10 Million on a 4 year contract. He joined superstar Ronaldinho in his return to Flamengo.

Career statistics[link]

Club career[link]

Correct as of June 1, 2012

• ¹ Including 14 matches and 15 goals in 2010 Rio de Janeiro State League.
• ² Including 9 matches and 7 goals in 2012 Rio de Janeiro State League.

International career[link]

Vágner Love is also member of the Brazilian national team and has played 21 games for the Seleção.^[14]

International stats[link]

As of 1 April 2009^[15][16][17]

National team Club Season Apps Goals Brazil Palmeiras 2004 1 0 CSKA Moscow 2006 3 1 2007 16 4 Total 20 4

International appearances and goals # Date Venue Opponent Result Goal Competition 2004 3 August 2003 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic  Colombia 4–0 2 2003 Pan American Games (Brazil U-20) 6 August 2003 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic  Dominican Republic 5–0 1 2003 Pan American Games (Brazil U-20) 9 August 2003 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic  Cuba 2–1 1 2003 Pan American Games (Brazil U-20) 12 August 2003 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic  Mexico 1–0 0 2003 Pan American Games (Brazil U-20) 15 August 2003 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic  Argentina 0–1 0 2003 Pan American Games (Brazil U-20) 2004 1. 11 July 2004 Arequipa, Peru  Costa Rica 4–1 0 Copa América 2004 2006 2. 16 August 2006 Oslo, Norway  Norway 1–1 0 Friendly 3. 3 September 2006 London, England  Argentina 3–0 0 Friendly 4. 5 September 2006 London, England  Wales 2–0 1 Friendly 7 October 2006 Kuwait City, Kuwait Al Kuwait Selection 4–0 0 Unofficial friendly 2007 5. 24 March 2007 Gothenburg, Sweden  Chile 4–0 0 Friendly 6. 27 March 2007 Stockholm, Sweden  Ghana 1–0 1 Friendly 7. 1 June 2007 London, England  England 1–1 0 Friendly 8. 26 June 2007 Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela  Mexico 0–2 0 Copa América 2007 9. 1 July 2007 Maturín, Venezuela  Chile 3–0 0 Copa América 2007 10. 4 July 2007 Puerto la Cruz, Venezuela  Ecuador 1–0 0 Copa América 2007 11. 7 July 2007 Puerto la Cruz, Venezuela  Chile 6–1 1 Copa América 2007 12. 10 July 2007 Maracaibo, Venezuela  Uruguay 2–2 0 Copa América 2007 13. 15 July 2007 Maracaibo, Venezuela  Argentina 3–0 0 Copa América 2007 14. 22 August 2007 Montpellier, France  Algeria 2–0 0 Friendly 15. 9 September 2007 Chicago, United States  United States 4–2 0 Friendly 16. 12 September 2007 Boston, United States  Mexico 3–1 0 Friendly 17. 14 October 2007 Bogotá, Colombia  Colombia 0–0 0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification 18. 17 October 2007 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil  Ecuador 5–0 1 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification 19. 18 November 2007 Lima, Peru  Peru 1–1 0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification 20. 21 November 2007 São Paulo, Brazil  Uruguay 2–1 0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours[link]

Club[link]

Palmeiras

• Brazilian Série B: 2003

CSKA Moscow

• Russian Premier League: 2005, 2006
• Russian Cup: 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011
• Russian Super Cup: 2006, 2007, 2009
• UEFA Cup: 2005

International[link]

Brazil

• Copa America: 2004, 2007
• Pan American Games: 2003 runner-up

Individual[link]

• Brazilian 2nd Division Top Scorer: 2003
• Pan American Games Top Scorer: 2003
• Campeonato Paulista Top Scorer: 2004
• Russian Premier League Top Scorer: 2008
• Campeonato Carioca Top Scorer: 2010
• UEFA Cup Top Scorer: 2009
• Russian Footballer of the Year: 2008

References[link]

External Links[link]

• Vágner Love on Playerhistory.com

Brazil squad v t e Brazil squad – 2004 Copa América Winners (7th Title) 1 Júlio César 2 Mancini 3 Luisão 4 Juan 5 Renato 6 Gustavo Nery 7 Adriano 8 Kléberson 9 Luís Fabiano 10 Alex (c) 11 Edu 12 Fábio 13 Maicon 14 Bordon 15 Cris 16 Dudu Cearense 17 Adriano Correia 18 Júlio Baptista 19 Diego 20 Felipe 21 Oliveira 22 Vágner Love Coach: Parreira v t e Brazil squad – 2007 Copa América Winners (8th Title) 1 Helton 2 Maicon 3 Alex 4 Juan 5 Mineiro 6 Gilberto 7 Elano 8 Gilberto Silva (c) 9 Vágner Love 10 Diego 11 Robinho 12 Doni 13 Daniel Alves 14 Alex Silva 15 Naldo 16 Kléber 17 Josué 18 Fernando 19 Júlio Baptista 20 Anderson 21 Afonso Alves 22 Fred Coach: Dunga

Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo playing for Real Madrid
Personal information
Full name	Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro
Date of birth	(1985-02-05) 5 February 1985 (age 27)
Place of birth	Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
Height	1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Playing position	Forward
Club information
Current club	Real Madrid
Number	7
Youth career
1993–1995	Andorinha
1995–1997	Nacional
1997–2002	Sporting CP
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2002–2003	Sporting CP	25	(3)
2003–2009	Manchester United	196	(84)
2009–	Real Madrid	101	(112)
National team‡
2001–2002	Portugal U17	9	(6)
2003	Portugal U20	5	(1)
2002–2003	Portugal U21	6	(3)
2004	Portugal U23	3	(1)
2003–	Portugal	89	(32)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:00, 13 May 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 21:31, 26 May 2012

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro,^[2] OIH, (born 5 February 1985),^[3] commonly known as Cristiano Ronaldo, is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a winger or striker for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and is the captain of the Portuguese national team. Ronaldo became the most expensive footballer in history after moving from Manchester United to Real Madrid in a transfer worth £80 million (€93.9 million/$131.6 million). In addition, his contract with Real Madrid, in which he is paid €12 million per year, makes him one of the highest-paid footballers in the world,^[4] and his buyout clause is valued at €1 billion as per his contract.^[5]

Ronaldo began his career as a youth player for Andorinha, where he played for two years, before moving to C.D. Nacional. In 1997, he made a move to Portuguese giants Sporting Clube de Portugal. Ronaldo's precocious talent caught the attention of Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, who signed him for £12.24 million (€15 million) in 2003. The following season, Ronaldo won his first club honour, the FA Cup. He also played at Euro 2004 with Portugal and scored his first international goal in the opening game of the tournament against Greece, in addition to helping Portugal reach the final. He was featured in the UEFA Euro All-Star Team of this competition.

Ronaldo was the first player to win all four main PFA and FWA awards, doing so in 2007. He was third in the 2007 FIFA World Player of the Year award and second in the 2007 Ballon d'Or award. In 2008, Ronaldo won the Champions League with United, was named best forward and player of the tournament and was the competition's top goalscorer as well as winning the European Golden Shoe, becoming the first winger to do so, and topping the Premier League Golden Boot award. He won three of the four main PFA and FWA trophies, only missing the PFA Young Player of the Year, and was named the FIFPro, World Soccer, Onze d'Or,^[6][7][8] and the FIFA World Player of the Year, in addition to becoming Manchester United's first Ballon d'Or winner in 40 years.^[9] Ronaldo holds the distinction of being the first player to win the FIFA Puskás Award, in 2009, an honour handed by FIFA to the best goal of the year. He scored that goal from 40 yards out against Porto in a UEFA Champions League quarter-final match, while playing for Manchester United.^[10] Three-time Ballon d'Or winner Johan Cruyff said in an interview on 2 April 2008, "Ronaldo is better than George Best and Denis Law, who were two brilliant and great players in the history of United."^[11] He was second in the 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year award and also second in the 2009 Ballon d'Or award.

After moving to Real Madrid in 2009, in his second season, Ronaldo became the highest goalscorer in a season in the history of Real Madrid with 53 goals, surpassing the club's previous high of 49 by Ferenc Puskás. During this season Ronaldo broke the record of most goals ever scored in a season in La Liga with 40, surpassing Telmo Zarra's and Hugo Sánchez's mark (38 goals) established in 1951 and 1990, respectively. Ronaldo also broke Zarra's record of most goals per minute, with a goal scored every 70.7 minutes. The newspaper Marca, the official deliverer of the Pichichi Trophy (the top La Liga goalscorer award), claimed that Ronaldo scored 41 goals (Marca assigned one more goal to Ronaldo than La Liga, which attributed it to Pepe). By doing so, he won the European Golden Shoe award once again, becoming the first player to win the trophy in two different championships. He was third in the 2010–11 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award and second in the 2011 FIFA Ballon d'Or. On 24 March 2012, with the first of two goals scored in the match against Real Sociedad, Ronaldo became the fastest La Liga player to score 100 goals in the league.^[12] Ronaldo officially broke his previous record of 40 goals in a La Liga season in the 2011–12 season; by doing so, he became first player to reach 40 goals in a single season in two consecutive years in any of the top European leagues. On 13 May 2012, the last matchday, Ronaldo scored against Mallorca which made him the first player ever to score against every team in a single season in La Liga.^[13] He finished the season with 60 goals in every competition, breaking the Real Madrid record he had set the previous season.

Ronaldo has been described as a skillful winger who will take on any defender with his dribbling and pace; he hits his free kicks with power and pace, and is able to beat defenders off the dribble and cross the ball. He is able to score with his head and feet.^[14]

Early life[link]

Ronaldo was born in Santo António, a neighbourhood of Funchal, Madeira, the youngest child of Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro, a cook, and José Dinis Aveiro, a municipal gardener.^[15] His second given name "Ronaldo" was chosen after then-U.S. president Ronald Reagan, who was his father's favourite actor. He has one older brother, Hugo, and two older sisters, Elma and Liliana Cátia.^[3] His great-grandmother Isabel da Piedade was from Cape Verde.^[16]

Club career[link]

Early career[link]

At the age of eight, Ronaldo played for amateur team Andorinha, where his father was the kit man. In 1995, Ronaldo signed with local club Nacional, and, after a title-winning campaign, he went on a three-day trial with Sporting CP, who subsequently signed him for an undisclosed sum.^[17]

Sporting Clube de Portugal[link]

Ronaldo joined Sporting's other youth players who trained at the Academia Sporting, the club's football academy, in Alcochete. He became the only player ever to play for Sporting's under-16, under-17, under-18, B-team, and the first team, all within one season.^[18] He scored two goals in his league debut on 7 October 2002, which Sporting CP won 3–0 against Moreirense, while featuring for Portugal in the 2002 European Under-17 Championship.^[19]

At the age of 15 Ronaldo was diagnosed with a racing heart, a condition that might have forced him to give up playing football. The Sporting staff were made aware of the condition and Ronaldo's mother gave her authorisation for him to go into hospital. While there, he had an operation in which a laser was used to cauterise the area of his heart that was causing the problem. The surgery took place in the morning and Ronaldo was discharged from hospital by the end of the afternoon; he resumed training only a few days later.^[20]

In November 2002, Ronaldo was invited to Arsenal's training ground, London Colney to meet manager Arsène Wenger and his coaching staff.^[21] Wenger, who was interested in signing the midfielder had arranged to meet Ronaldo's representatives, Formation (who suggested the player originally to Gérard Houllier, then Liverpool's manager) in the subsequent months to discuss a transfer arrangement.^[22] However he came to the attention of Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson in the summer of 2003, when Sporting defeated United 3–1 in the inauguration of the Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon. Ronaldo's performance impressed the Manchester United players, who urged Ferguson to sign him.^[23]

Manchester United[link]

2003–2006[link]

Ronaldo playing against Chelsea in April 2006.

Ronaldo became Manchester United's first-ever Portuguese player when he signed for €15 million^[24] (£12.24 million) after the 2002–03 season.^[25] He requested the number 28 (his number at Sporting), as he did not want the pressure of living up to the expectation linked to the number 7 shirt, which had previously been worn by players such as George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, and David Beckham. "After I joined, the manager asked me what number I'd like. I said 28. But Ferguson said 'No, you're going to have No. 7,' and the famous shirt was an extra source of motivation. I was forced to live up to such an honour."^[26]

Ronaldo made his team debut as a 60th-minute substitute in a 4–0 home victory over Bolton Wanderers. He scored his first goal for Manchester United with a free kick in a 3–0 win over Portsmouth on 1 November 2003. Ronaldo ended his first season in English football by scoring the opening goal in United's 3–0 FA Cup final victory over Millwall.^[27]

He scored United's 1000th Premier League goal on 29 October 2005 in a 4–1 loss to Middlesbrough.^[28] He scored ten goals in all competitions, and fans voted him to his first FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year award in 2005.

He was sent off in the Manchester derby at the City of Manchester Stadium on 14 January 2006 (a game which United lost 3–1) for kicking City's former United player Andrew Cole.^[29]

Ronaldo won his second trophy in English football in the 2005–06 season, scoring the third goal in Manchester United's 4–0 Football League Cup final victory over Wigan Athletic.^[30]

2006–2009[link]

Ronaldo with United during their 2006–2007 season.

The 2006–2007 season proved to be the breakout year for Ronaldo, as he broke the 20 goal barrier for the first time and picked up his first league title with Manchester United.

In November and December 2006, Ronaldo received consecutive Barclays Player of the Month honours, becoming only the third player in Premier League history to do so after Dennis Bergkamp in 1997 and Robbie Fowler in 1996.^[31][32] He scored his 50th Manchester United goal against city rivals Manchester City on 5 May 2007 as United claimed their first Premier League title in four years, and he was voted into his second consecutive FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year award at the end of the year.

Despite rumours circulating in March 2007 that Real Madrid were willing to pay an unprecedented €80 million (£54 million) for Ronaldo,^[33] he signed a five-year, £120,000-a-week (£31 million total) extension with United on 13 April, making him the highest-paid player in team history.^[34][35]

Ronaldo amassed a host of personal awards for the season. He won the PFA Players' Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year awards, joining Andy Gray (in 1977) as the only players to receive this honour.^[36] In April, he completed the treble by winning the PFA Fans' Player of the Year. Ronaldo was also one of eight Manchester United players named in the 2006–07 PFA Premier League Team of the Year.

Ronaldo (left) and Carlos Tévez prior to a Champions League match.

Ronaldo's 2007–08 season began with a red card for a headbutt on Portsmouth player Richard Hughes during United's second match of the season, for which he was punished with a three-match ban.^[37] Ronaldo said he had "learned a lot" from the experience and would not let players "provoke" him in the future.^[38] After scoring the only goal in a Champions League away match against Sporting, Ronaldo also scored the injury-time winner in the return fixture as Manchester United topped their Champions League group.^[39]

He finished as the runner-up to Kaká for the 2007 Ballon d'Or,^[40] and was third in the running for the FIFA World Player of the Year award, behind Kaká and Lionel Messi.^[41]

Ronaldo scored his first hat trick for Manchester United in a 6–0 win against Newcastle United at Old Trafford on 12 January 2008, bringing Manchester United up to the top of the Premier League table.^[42] He scored his twenty-third league goal of the season in a 2–0 win against Reading, equalling his entire total for the 2006–07 season.^[43] During a 1–1 Champions League first knockout round draw against Lyon on 20 February, an unidentified Lyon supporter continuously aimed a green laser at Ronaldo and United teammate Nani, prompting an investigation by UEFA.^[44] One month later, Lyon were fined CHF5,000 (£2,427) for the incident.^[45]

On 19 March 2008, Ronaldo captained United for the first time in his career in a home win over Bolton, scoring both goals in the 2–0 victory.^[46] The second of the goals was his 33rd of the campaign, which set a new club single-season scoring record by a midfielder and thus topped George Best's forty-year-old total of 32 goals in the 1967–68 season.^[47] Ronaldo scored another brace in a 4–0 win over Aston Villa on 29 March, which at the time gave him 35 goals in 37 domestic and European matches as both a starter and substitute. Ronaldo's scoring streak was rewarded with his becoming the first winger to win the 2007–08 European Golden Shoe, finishing eight points ahead of Mallorca's Dani Güiza.^[48]

In the 2007–08 Champions League final on 21 May against league rivals Chelsea, Ronaldo scored the opening goal after 26 minutes, which was negated by a Chelsea equaliser in the 45th minute as the match ended 1–1 after extra time. His misfire in the penalty shoot-out put Chelsea in position to win the trophy, but John Terry shot wide right after slipping on the pitch surface, and Manchester United emerged victorious 6–5 on penalties. Ronaldo was named the UEFA Fans' Man of the Match,^[49] and wrapped up the campaign with a career-high 42 goals in all competitions, falling four short of Denis Law's team-record mark of 46 in the 1963–64 season.

Ronaldo and Manchester United against Albert Riera and rivals Liverpool.

On 5 June 2008, Sky Sports reported that Ronaldo had expressed an interest in moving to Real Madrid if they offered him the same amount of money the team had allegedly promised him earlier in the year.^[50] Manchester United filed a tampering complaint with FIFA on 9 June over Madrid's alleged pursuit of Ronaldo, but FIFA declined to take any action.^[51][52] Speculation that a transfer would happen continued until 6 August, when Ronaldo confirmed that he would stay at United for at least another year.^[53]

Ronaldo underwent ankle surgery at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam on 7 July.^[54] He returned to action on 17 September in United's UEFA Champions League goalless group-stage draw with Villarreal as a substitute for Park Ji-Sung,^[55] and scored his first overall goal of the season in a 3–1 League Cup third round win over Middlesbrough on 24 September.

In a 5–0 win over Stoke City on 15 November 2008, Ronaldo scored his 100th and 101st goals in all competitions for Manchester United, both from free kicks.^[56] The goals also meant that Ronaldo had now scored against each of the other 19 teams in the Premier League at the time.^[57] On 2 December, Ronaldo became Manchester United's first Ballon d'Or recipient since George Best in 1968. He finished with 446 points, 165 ahead of runner-up Lionel Messi.^[58] He was awarded the Silver Ball after finishing with two goals as United won the Club World Cup on 19 December.^[59]

On 8 January 2009, Ronaldo was uninjured in a single-car accident in which he wrote off his Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano in a tunnel along the A538 near Manchester Airport. A breathalyser test he gave to police officers at the scene was negative, and he attended training later that morning.^[60] Four days later, he became the first Premier League player ever to be named the FIFA World Player of the Year, in addition to being the first Portuguese player to win the award since Luís Figo in 2001.^[61]

Ronaldo scored his first Champions League goal of the season, and first since the final against Chelsea, in a 2–0 victory over Internazionale that sent United into the quarter-finals.^[62] In the second leg against Porto, Ronaldo scored a 40-yard game-winning goal as United advanced to the semi-finals. He later called it the best goal he had ever scored.^[63][64] Ronaldo participated in his second consecutive Champions League final, but made little impact in United's 2–0 loss to Barcelona. He finished with 53 appearances in all competitions, which was four higher than the previous year, but scored sixteen fewer goals (26) than his career-best total of 42 from the previous season.

On 11 June, Manchester United accepted an unconditional offer of £80 million from Real Madrid for Ronaldo after it was revealed that he again had expressed his desire to leave the club.^[65] It was confirmed by a representative of the Glazer family that the sale was fully condoned by Ferguson.^[66] When Ronaldo had eventually completed his transfer to Real, he expressed his gratitude towards Ferguson for helping him develop as a player, saying, "He's been my father in sport, one of the most important factors and most influential in my career."^[67]

Real Madrid[link]

2009–10 season[link]

Ronaldo and Real Madrid against Diego Forlán and city rivals Atlético Madrid.

On 26 June 2009, Real Madrid confirmed that Ronaldo would join the club on 1 July 2009 from Manchester United for £80 million (€93.9 million/$131.6 million),^[68] after agreeing terms and signing a six-year contract.^[69] Ronaldo's contract is worth €11 million per year^[4] and it has a €1 billion buy-out clause.^[70] He was presented to the world media as a Real Madrid player on 6 July,^[71] where he was handed the number 9 jersey.^[72] The shirt was presented to him by Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stéfano.^[73] Ronaldo was welcomed by 80,000 fans at his presentation at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, surpassing Diego Maradona's record of 75,000 fans when he was presented in Italy, after he was transferred from Barcelona to Napoli in 1984.^[74]

Ronaldo made his Madrid debut on 21 July in a 1–0 win over Shamrock Rovers. His first goal came one week later with a penalty in Madrid's 4–2 win over LDU Quito.^[75] On 29 August, Ronaldo capped his La Liga debut with a goal, scoring Real's second from the penalty spot in a 3–2 home win against Deportivo La Coruña.^[76] On 15 September, Ronaldo scored two free-kicks in a 5–2 away victory over Zürich, his first Champions League goals for Real.^[77] He broke a Madrid club record when he scored in a league match against Villarreal and thus became the first ever player to score in his first four La Liga appearances.^[78]

An ankle injury suffered on 10 October, while Ronaldo was on international duty with Portugal against Hungary,^[79] kept him out until 25 November, which in turn caused him to miss both of Madrid's Champions League group stage matches against Milan. Ronaldo made his first post-injury start in a 1–0 El Clásico defeat to Barcelona on 29 November. On 6 December, he was sent off for the first time in his Madrid career in Madrid's 4–2 victory against Almería, a match which also saw him miss a penalty. He was carded first for removing his shirt during a goal celebration, then for kicking out at an opponent three minutes later.^[80] On 5 May 2010 Ronaldo scored his first Real Madrid hat-trick in an away game against Mallorca. Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuaín scored 53 league goals during the course of the season and became Real's highest scoring league duo in their history.^[81]

2010–11 season[link]

Ronaldo during a friendly game against Peñarol before the beginning of the season.

With the departure of Raúl during the summer of 2010, Ronaldo was handed the No. 7 jersey for Real Madrid.^[82] On 23 October 2010, Ronaldo scored four goals against Racing de Santander,^[83] the most goals he has ever scored in a single match.^[84] This completed a goalscoring run of six consecutive matches (three in La Liga, one in the Champions League, and two for Portugal) in which Ronaldo scored in each match, totalling 11 goals, which is the most Ronaldo has scored in a single month. Before Real Madrid's 5–0 defeat by Barcelona at the Camp Nou, Ronaldo scored his second La Liga hat-trick of the season in a 5–1 win over Athletic Bilbao.^[85] His final match of the calendar year saw him score a hat-trick in a 8–0 trashing of Levante in the Copa del Rey.^[86]