Cristiano Ronaldo Biography and Family

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro was born on 5^th February 1985 in Santo António, Funchal in Madeira, Portugal.

He was youngest of his family, his mother Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro was a cook and his father José Dinis Aveiro was a gardener. He has one elder brother Hugo and two elder sisters, Elma and Liliana Catia.

He got his second name as Ronaldo because his father was a great fan of actor Ronald Regan then US president.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s initial journey

Ronaldo started his football career at the age of 8 for team Andorinha, where his father worked as kit man. Then he spent two years with local club Nacional.

Then Sporting CP signed him for a fee of £1,500 when he was a the age12. With Sporting CP he trained at the club’s football academy with other youth players in the club.

At the club, he becomes the only player to play from Under 16 to Under 18 in a single season.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s real test in life

At the age of 14, Ronaldo believed that he can become a professional footballer. So, he discontinued his education to focus his entire energy on football.

During those days, his family lived in a financial crisis which never let Ronaldo down. He continued his football training day and night.

“All he wanted to do as a boy was to play football. He love the game so much he would miss or escape out of his bedroom window with a ball when he was supposed to be doing his homework” – Grandfather of Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo has diagnosed with Racing heart a year after. Racing is a condition where heart rate exceeds the normal resting rate.

This was the situation when Ronaldo has to decide whether to go for the operation or give up football. But the passion for football forced him to go for the operation. Then with laser treatment operation, Ronaldo was fine.

Journey to Red devil’s Manchester United

During his stint with Sporting CP, he was suggested to Liverpool and Barcelona. Then in 2002, he met Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger who was interested in signing up but things could not materialize.

The turning point of his career came when Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson spotted Ronaldo skills when Sporting CP defeated United 3-1 during inauguration match of Estádio José Alvalade stadium in Lisbon.

Manchester players asked Sir Alex Ferguson to sign him after his exceptional performance against them.

Manchester United signed Ronaldo for a transfer fees of £12.24 million. It was that time made him the most expensive transfer fees for a teenager in English football history.

“Ronaldo become the first Portugal player to play for Manchester United”

Sir Alex Ferguson offered Ronaldo number 7 shirt which was previously worn by United great George Best, Eric Cantona and David Beckham.

Ronaldo made his debut for Manchester United in August 2003 against Bolton Wanderer, when he came as a substitute in the 60^th minute.

“There have been few players describes as “the new George Best” over the years but this is the first time its been a compliment to me” – George Best, Former Manchester United player on Ronaldo in 2003

Ronaldo’s first goal for Manchester United came with a free kick against Portsmouth where United won the match 3-0. The first season for Ronaldo with Manchester United ended with FA Cup trophy against Millwall.

Next two seasons has been a learning curve for Ronaldo and he went on to produce magical games for the United. In November 2005-2006 season, Ronaldo signed a new contract that extends until 2010.

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Cristiano Ronaldo’s first premier league title

In the 2006-2007 season, Ronaldo scored 17 goals in the premier league where Manchester United clinched the title for the 9^th time. Then he won several awards for the season. The main achievement is the runner up for Ballon d’Or award. And third in FIFA World player of the year for 2007.

His achievement at the end of the 2006-2007 season proved his words which he said during the start of his career.

“I want to be one of the best player around in two or three years’ time “- CR7 in 2004

In 2008, Ronaldo captained Manchester United for the first time in a home match against Bolton where he scored two goals for winning cause. Manchester United lifted the premier league for a successive time in 2008 with Ronaldo scoring 31 goals. His performance earned him Premier league Golden Boot and European Golden Shoe award.

Then in UEFA Champions league, he was the top scorer with 8 goals which guided Manchester United to the champion’s league title after 1999. His performance in the champion’s league leads to UEFA Club footballer of the year.

Ronaldo continued his success with Manchester United for the 2008-2009 season. He scored 18 goals in Premier league which lead Manchester United to the third successive premier league title and also FIFA Club World cup. He was received both Ballon d’ Or and FIFA world player of the year in 2008.

Ronaldo ended the season with Manchester United reaching the finals of UEFA Champions league where they lost to Barcelona 2-0. He ended his time with Manchester United by scoring 118 goals in 292 appearances in different leagues.

Strong heart of Cristiano Ronaldo

On the initial journey to success, there was person loss to Ronaldo in 2005. His father José Dinis Aveiro died due to alcohol-related liver problem. Since then Ronaldo said he never drink alcohol. Even after his father died, Ronaldo continued his football journey with a strong heart.

In 2004, Ronaldo visited Indonesia to raise funds for rehabilitation after Tsunami. During Tsunami Ronaldo saw a boy in a video wearing number 7 Portugal football shirt who was struck for 19 days which really impacted Ronaldo’sheart.

Cristiano Ronaldo move to Real Madrid

Real Madrid signed Ronaldo for a whopping transfer fee of £80 million which was a world record at that time. He made his La Liga debut for Real Madrid against Deportivo La Coruña. He also scored his debut goal in the same match through penalty.

Ronaldo was given number 9 shirt since the number 7 was with Raúl’. But eventually, he got the number 7 in the 2010-2011 season after Raul’s departure from the club. During the season he was runner up for both Ballon d’ Or award and FIFA world player of the year award behind Lionel Messi. Ronaldo ended the season with 33 goals in all leagues.

Next season for Ronaldo in Real Madrid saw him breaking many records. He lifted his first trophy for Real Madrid against arch rival Barcelona by scoring a crucial goal in the last minute in Copas del Rey final match. He went on to score 53 goals in the season.

In the 2011-2012 season, even though he scored plenty of goals, the success for major trophy haunted him. He missed a crucial penalty against Bayern Munich in the semi-finals of the champions league.

First La Liga trophy for Cristiano Ronaldo

Real Madrid won the La Liga trophy in the 2011-2012 season by topping the table with 100 points, nine points clear of arch rivals Barcelona. He went on to score 46 goals for the team in the season. For the FIFA Ballon d’ Or award, Ronaldo finished second behind Lionel Messi.

What is FIFA Ballon d’ Or award?

“FIFA Ballon d’ Or is an international award given jointly by FIFA and France Football to the world’s best Men football player. Players were selected based on votes from International journalists and national team coaches and captions. FIFA Ballon d’Or award ended in 2016”

Next season is a bit of silent season for Ronaldo as Real Madrid fail to retain the La Liga trophy. Only positive came in terms of retaining the Supercopa de España. Ronaldo again finished runner up in the FIFA Ballon d’ Or award in 2012.

Journey with Real Madrid continues

“When you play with Ronaldo on your team, you are already 1-0 up.” – Zinedine Zidane

On November 2016, Ronaldo signed a new contract with Real Madrid that runs until 2021. Ronaldo then won second FIFA Club World cup and went to win Ballon d’ Or award for the fourth time. Also, he won the inaugural Best FIFA Men’s player from FIFA.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s hunger for success continued as Real Madrid lifted both La Liga and UEFA Champions league in 2017. Ronaldo crossed 400 goals marks for Real Madrid.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s International career and first world cup

Ronaldo started his international career in 2001 and he represented Under-15, Under-17, Under -20, Under-21 and Under-23 Portugal team.

Ronaldo played his first match for the senior team in 2003 against Kazakhstan and scored his first international goal against Greece in UEFA Euro in 2004. He helped Portugal reaching the final of that tournament against Greece, where Portugal lost. His performance in the tournament earned him a place in the team of the tournament in UEFA Euro championship in 2004.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s scored his first world cup goal against Iran in 2006 FIFA World cup qualification match. Ronaldo’s first World cup ended with semi-final defeat against France 0-1.

As Leader of Portugal national team

Cristiano Ronaldo captained Portugal for the first time in a friendly match against Brazil in 2007. He becomes Portugal’s permanent captain in July 2008 after Portugal’s quarter final defeat against German in Euro 2008.

During World cup in 2010, Ronaldo won the man of the match in all three matches in the group stage. But eventually, Portugal lost against Spain in the round of 16.

In Euro 2012, Ronaldo scored three goals in the tournament, which made him one of the top scorer of the tournament. But Portugal lost to Spain in semifinals in the penalty shootout. He was included in Euro 2012 team of the tournament.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s first major title at International level

In Euro 2016, despite finishing 3^rd in the group stage, Portugal entered the knock out stage due to a new format in the tournament. Then Portugal entered semi-finals by beating Croatia in the round of 16 and Poland in the quarter finals. Ronaldo then becomes the first player in the history to represent three semi finals in Euro championship. He then scored a goal against in a 2-0 win over Wales in the semifinals.

Ronaldo then becomes the first player in the history to represent three semi finals in Euro championship. He then scored a goal against in a 2-0 win over Wales in the semifinals.

Ronald’s biggest moment of life came when Portugal lifted Euro 2016 trophy by beating France 1-0 in the finals. Ronaldo received Silver boot for being second in top goal scorer list in the tournament. And he was named for the third time in his career in the Euro championship team of the tournament.