9781422270714

WORLD CLASS FOOTBALLERS SOCCER’S BEST PLAYERS

CRISTIANO RONALDO

ERLING HAALAND

KYLIAN MBAPPÉ

LIONEL MESSI

ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI

WORLD CLASS FOOTBALLERS SOCCER’S BEST PLAYERS

PETER DOUGLAS

MIAMI

PO Box 221876, Hollywood, FL 33022 (866) MCP-BOOK (toll-free) • www.masoncrest.com

Copyright © 2024 by Mason Crest, an imprint of National Highlights, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the publisher. First printing 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Series ISBN: 978-1-4222-4745-7 Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4222-4746-4 ebook ISBN: 978-1-4222-7071-4 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Douglas, Peter, author. Title: Cristiano Ronaldo / Peter Douglas. Description: Hollywood, FL: Mason Crest, [2024] | Series: World class footballers: soccer’s best players | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2023027269 | ISBN 9781422247464 (hardback) | ISBN 9781422270714 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Ronaldo, Cristiano--Juvenile literature. | Soccer players--Portugal--Biography-- Juvenile literature. Classification: LCC GV942.7.R626 D68 2024 | DDC 796.334092 [B]--dc23/eng/20230623

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Chapter 1: Greatest Moments................................................7 Chapter 2: Club Dreams......................................................21 Chapter 3: National Pride....................................................35 Chapter 4: Words Count......................................................47 Chapter 5: Off the Pitch.......................................................63 Series Glossary of Key Terms...............................................76 Further Reading & Internet Resources.................................77 Index................................................................................. 78 Author Biography & Credits.................................................80 CONTENTS

KEY ICONS TO LOOK FOR:

Words to Understand: These words with their easy-to-understand definitions will increase the reader’s understanding of the text while building vocabulary skills. Sidebars: This boxed material within the main text allows readers to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities, and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational Videos: Readers can view videos by scanning our QR codes, providing them with additional educational content to supplement the text. Examples include news coverage, moments in history, speeches, iconic sports moments, and much more!

Text-Dependent Questions: These questions send the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there.

Research Projects: Readers are pointed toward areas of further inquiry connected to each chapter. Suggestions are provided for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis.

WORDS TO UNDERSTAND

inaugural: marking a beginning; first in a projected series replicate: duplicate; repeat stalwart: unshakably dependable

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World Class Footballers: Cristiano Ronaldo

CHAPTER 1

Greatest Moments

Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo is a larger-than-life figure in world soccer. The gifted attacker is a global celebrity, the likes of which are rarely seen. A dominant career enduring more than two decades at the highest level of the sport has made Ronaldo one of the most recognizable people in the world. Ronaldo’s goal-scoring prowess is legendary. He has a remarkable skill in being able to manufacture goals in seemingly impossible positions. No one in the history of the game has scored more than Ronaldo. Between league, cup, continental, and international competitions, he has scored more than 800 goals, an unrivaled feat. He has toppled records throughout his career, which has gained him a lot of attention and a great amount of wealth.

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Greatest Moments

Forbes magazine regularly lists Ronaldo as one of the top three highest-earning athletes every year and estimates that he made more than $800 million in the 2010s alone. With his dizzying array of skills, clubs are willing to pay handsomely to have him wear their colors, and fans willingly shell out their hard-earned cash to buy Ronaldo gear and to watch him live. On the pitch, Ronaldo rarely disappoints. His sublime ball control skills often leave defenders grasping at air as he goes by them. His creativity when he gains space inside the box leaves goalkeepers helpless, able only to guess where the ball is going when it comes off either foot. Fans of Real Madrid can attest to his wizardry. Ronaldo played nine seasons for the Spanish club in La Liga, the top tier of soccer in Spain and one of the best leagues in the world. This was his longest tenure with any club in his career, and he was at the peak of his considerable skills during those years with Los Blancos. More than half of Ronaldo’s career goals came while playing with Madrid. His massive individual accomplishments drove tremendous team success. This has been the case wherever Ronaldo has played. Aside from a short 25-match stint at Porto to start his senior career, every club Ronaldo has played for has won a league championship, at minimum. Collectively, between Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus, Ronaldo’s teams have won seven league titles. At the height of his powers with Madrid, Ronaldo blossomed as a playmaker as well, creating opportunities for his teammates while continuing to fill the net himself. He was voted the best player in the world four times while there. As he enters his late thirties, his game may evolve yet again, as different skills and tactics may be required for Ronaldo to add to his legacy of greatness.

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World Class Footballers: Cristiano Ronaldo

GREATEST MOMENTS

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Greatest Moments

STARTING A GOLDEN BOOT COLLECTION In his fifth season at Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo had a breakthrough year. He tallied 31 goals in Premier League competition to lead United to a second consecutive Premier League title. This prolific output represented the highest goal total for any Premier League player in the 2007-2008 campaign, earning Ronaldo the Premier Golden Boot Award as the league’s top scorer. Those 31 goals, however, were not only best in England but were also best across all of the top-division leagues in Europe. This earned Ronaldo another golden boot. The European Golden Boot Award is presented each season to the leading goal scorer in league play across the top flight of all the European leagues. 2008 was the first of four times Ronaldo would win the European Golden Boot. He also claimed it three times while playing at Real Madrid, in 2011, 2014, and 2015. He also won a league scoring title in Serie A with Juventus in 2020-2021, scoring 33 goals, but the European Golden Boot that season went to Robert Lewandowski in the Bundesliga, who scored 40 for Bayern Munich.

Watch all of Ronaldo’s 2007-2008 Premier League goals.

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World Class Footballers: Cristiano Ronaldo

SINGULAR STRIKE In the ascent to the peak of his powers, Ronaldo scored several splashy goals, but perhaps none as jaw-dropping as the one he scored to win a UEFA Champions League match for Manchester United in 2009. The play came early in the road match against Porto. Ronaldo took a pass about 40 yards from the Porto goal, controlling it with his right instep. He used his next touch to flick it slightly ahead and to his right. Then, with a three-step runup, Ronaldo hammered the ball with his right foot, driving a perfect strike into the upper left portion of the goal, just beyond the outstretched fingertips of the leaping Porto keeper. The goal was all United needed that day, as it held up for a 1-0 victory. Not only did the goal win the match, but it also won the inaugural FIFA Puskás Award for the best goal of the year.

Ronaldo’s magnificent strike secures victory for his team.

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Greatest Moments

FIRST RECOGNIZED AS WORLD’S BEST PLAYER

The Ballon d’Or (Golden Ball) award is international football’s most prestigious individual honor. Awarded by the French magazine France Football since 1956, past winners include some of the most storied names in the sports’ history. Ronaldo joined the ranks of players such as Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini, and Marco van Basten when he was named the winner of the award after his spectacular 2008 season with Manchester United. Ronaldo scored 42 goals in 49 matches across all competitions for the Red Devils, leading them to both Premier League and UEFA Champions League titles. Ronaldo finished ahead of Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and Liverpool’s Fernando Torres to claim his first Ballon d’Or as the best player in the world. He would go on to win the award four more times (2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017).

Ronaldo collects all five awards for being the best player in the world.

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World Class Footballers: Cristiano Ronaldo

FIRST INTERNATIONAL HAT TRICK On September 6, 2013, Ronaldo and his Portuguese national team faced Northern Ireland in Group F play during UEFA qualifying for the 2014 World Cup. This was the 7th of 10 group stage matches, and Portugal needed a win to put itself on solid footing to advance. Northern Ireland had proven to be a plucky bunch, playing Portugal to a 1-1 draw earlier in qualifying. This time around, the Green and White Army proved to be just as tough, taking a 2-1 second-half lead in the 52nd minute on a goal from Jamie Ward. A loss at this stage in the competition would make qualifying much more uncertain for Portugal, and Ronaldo rose to the occasion in spectacular fashion. The superstar striker ripped off three goals in a 15-minute span to secure the win and the crucial three points. It was the perfect moment for his first career hat trick for Portugal, as it all but ensured the team’s place at the World Cup in Brazil.

Ronaldo’s hat trick bolsters his country’s World Cup qualifying chances in 2013.

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Greatest Moments

LOS BLANCOS’ BEST La Liga club Real Madrid is one of the most storied in the football world. Established in 1902, the modern version of the club has won La Liga and Champions League titles with regularity since the 1950s. In that time, some of the best ever to play the game have suited up in the all whites. Real Madrid legends include Ferenc Puskás, Alfredo Di Stéfano, and Hugo Sánchez. Then, there are those who have played more than 600 career matches there, such as Santillana, Karim Benzema, and hometown hero Raúl. On October 15, 2015, Ronaldo scored in a league match against Levante to stand above all of these names as the top goal scorer in club history. The goal was his 324th for Real Madrid, putting him ahead of Raúl, who scored 323 goals in 741 matches. Ronaldo and Raúl were teammates briefly, as Ronaldo’s first season with the club was the last for Raúl. When Ronaldo left Madrid in 2019 after nine seasons, his record total stood at 450 goals in just 438 matches.

Ronaldo scores his team’s second goal against Levante to break Real Madrid’s all-time goal-scoring record in 2015.

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World Class Footballers: Cristiano Ronaldo

EUROPEAN CHAMPION By 2016, Ronaldo had won every title and trophy there was to win as a club player. He had not, however, been able to replicate that level of success on the international stage. Despite his best efforts, Ronaldo’s Portugal squads had ultimately come up short. That all changed with the 2016 UEFA European Championship, more commonly called Euro 2016. Held every four years since 1960, the competition pits the best UEFA member teams against each other in a battle for continental supremacy. Coming into the 2016 event, Ronaldo was in good form, having scored five times in qualifying. He scored two of Portugal’s goals in the final group stage match to earn the 3-3 draw and a berth in the knockout round. There, Ronaldo scored the winning goal in the semifinal against Wales to send Portugal through to the final match. Unfortunately for the Portuguese captain, Ronaldo injured his knee early in the match against France and had to watch from the sidelines as his teammates secured a 1-0 victory to claim the title. Nevertheless, as captain, Ronaldo lifted the trophy, the first major football trophy ever for Portugal.

Portugal wins a hard-fought victory over France in Euro 2016.

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Greatest Moments

CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS Coming into the 2018 season, the Ronaldo-led Real Madrid team had claimed back-to-back UEFA Champions League (UCL) crowns and was looking for a third consecutive title in the world’s toughest club competition. For Ronaldo, the win would be historic. He had already won the event four times, having also triumphed with Manchester United in 2008 and Madrid earlier in his tenure in 2014. No player had ever played on five Champions League winners. Ronaldo dominated the 2018 competition, scoring 15 goals to lead all scorers for the sixth consecutive year. In the final match against Liverpool of the Premier League, Ronaldo’s teammate Garreth Bale scored a spectacular goal on an overhead kick, and Madrid won 3-1. Ronaldo lifted his record fifth UCL trophy following what would be his last match with Real Madrid.

Highlights from the 2018 UEFA Champions League final.

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World Class Footballers: Cristiano Ronaldo