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Spanish Inqusition: Can CR9 Become The Greatest In Madrid's History?
Goal.com's Cyrus C. Malek reflects on an historic day for Cristiano Ronaldo. But will it also be an historic day for Real Madrid?
07-Jul-2009 2:00:08 PM
Last night in Madrid, it was almost as if the tenth Champions League trophy had already been won. Rarely filled to the brim in the oppressive heat of the Spanish summer, the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu was roaring in full voice as a young Portuguese footballer, wearing next season’s white Real Madrid kit, stepped into the arena.
With the No. 9 emblazoned on the back of his shirt, Cristiano Ronaldo now becomes a member of an illustrious history. After leaving behind the Manchester United No. 7 shirt (an honour he shared with the likes of David Beckham, George Best and Eric Cantona), Ronaldo now joins a group that consists of some of the greatest footballers in the history of the sport: Ronaldo (the Brazilian one), Hugo Sanchez, and, of course, Alfredo Di Stefano.
Like David Beckham, who completed an historic Man Utd to Madrid transfer before him, Ronaldo (speaking of Cristiano now) is not just an athlete of the top order. Even more so than Beckham in both facets, Ronaldo is a phenomenon just as much off the pitch as he is on it.
A marketing diamond, he is a Galactico in every — his likeness adorning magazine covers, advertisements, and, of course, Real Madrid merchandise. Converting his shirt number to the historic No. 9, Ronaldo has effectively re-branded the business that is his persona — becoming every bit of a sports icon as he is an icon of popular culture.
But Cristiano is not without his critics either. As former Madrid supremo Ramon Calderon criticised David Beckham for being little more than a B-list actor, Ronaldo has been labelled an Oscar-winner due to crumbling at the slightest suspicion of contact. Others find him to be a self-promoting egoist, quick to treat the crowd to a string of flashy tricks just to hear them chant his name.
While some of these criticisms are not without warrant, it is certainly clear that the Portuguese starlet is more than just a pretty face. Love him or hate him, there is no denying CR9’s talent.
As the crown jewel in Florentino Perez’s new Galactico empire, Ronaldo, at just 24-years-old, has already won nearly every individual accolade a professional footballer can win; the FIFA and FIFPro World Player of the Year awards, the Ballon d'Or and the European Golden Shoe are but a few in a long list of personal accomplishments the youngster has collected.
But as both fans and athletes know, individual milestones mean nothing if the team falters. And in this facet, Ronaldo is also at the very top of his class. Having already helped Manchester United take three Premier League titles, a FIFA Club World Cup crown and a Champions League trophy (amongst a plethora of relatively less-coveted titles), Ronaldo has already managed to win some of football’s greatest championships.
As he prepares for his career with Los Blancos, the prospect of how good Ronaldo can be at Madrid is daunting. If his performances in England’s Premier League were impressive, his outings in La Liga promise to be even more spectacular.
Whereas the Premier League is well known for its physically arduous play and more direct style of football, La Liga is touted as the more technically adept league, abound with flourishes and artfully deft flicks.
For Ronaldo, having already experienced the contact of the English game should serve as a tremendous advantage and is likely to prepare him well for the challenges of La Liga, while his superb control of the ball and creativity make him a perfect fit for the Spanish interpretation of the game.
But just how good will Ronaldo really be within the grand scheme of Real Madrid’s history?
At just 24, Cristiano is just beginning to enter the prime of his career, a frightening prospect for La Liga’s defenders. But will he be able to etch his name into the concrete foundation of the Santiago Bernabeu as so many great players have before him?
In his comments leading up to the day of his presentation, CR9 said, somewhat audaciously, that he hoped to become the best player in Real Madrid history.
In just six seasons at Manchester United, he won virtually every title he could have won. But even if Ronaldo is to repeat his performances for Manchester United with Real Madrid, one would still be hard pressed to dub him as the greatest in the club’s history.
Playing alongside the likes of Kaka, Benzema, Raul, Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Higuain, Albiol, and possibly many more high-profile names, Ronaldo will be but one star in a galaxy of Galacticos.
While he may already be used to playing with exceptional players, as Manchester United are no strangers to employing some of the world’s best, playing in the company of another World Player of the Year and many more players of exceptional quality who may soon be vying for that crown is something that Ronaldo has yet not faced.
And then of course there are the timeless names of Raul, Hugo, Puskas, and Di Stefano. To supersede these legends, Ronaldo would not only have to help, but lead Real Madrid to not just a tenth Champions League, but (accounting for the more competitive rigours of the modern game) an 11th and 12th European title as well.
To pose a challenge as the best in the club’s history, he must help Madrid dominate La Liga for years and lead Los Blancos to the Copa del Rey, Champions League and Liga ‘triplete’.
Just this past season, Raul surpassed Di Stefano as the highest goal scorer in Real Madrid’s history, cementing his status as the club’s most iconic figure. If Ronaldo is to hold a candle to such a degree of eminence, he will have to do more than stake a claim to the captain’s No. 7 shirt upon retirement.
Scoring over 300 goals in White would be a start, and while it is highly improbable that Ronaldo will ever be able to repeat the performance of his unprecedented season at Old Trafford, 42 goals-a-season would make that 300-goal mark frighteningly attainable.
Cristiano Ronaldo was welcomed by over 80,000 fans at his official presentation yesterday, besting Diego Maradona's record of 75,000 fans when the Argentine was transferred from Barcelona to Napoli in 1984. Keeping with good company, CR9 has already begun his Madrid career in record fashion. It remains to be seen if he will end it in the same manner.
Cyrus C. Malek, Goal.com
With the No. 9 emblazoned on the back of his shirt, Cristiano Ronaldo now becomes a member of an illustrious history. After leaving behind the Manchester United No. 7 shirt (an honour he shared with the likes of David Beckham, George Best and Eric Cantona), Ronaldo now joins a group that consists of some of the greatest footballers in the history of the sport: Ronaldo (the Brazilian one), Hugo Sanchez, and, of course, Alfredo Di Stefano.
Like David Beckham, who completed an historic Man Utd to Madrid transfer before him, Ronaldo (speaking of Cristiano now) is not just an athlete of the top order. Even more so than Beckham in both facets, Ronaldo is a phenomenon just as much off the pitch as he is on it.
A marketing diamond, he is a Galactico in every — his likeness adorning magazine covers, advertisements, and, of course, Real Madrid merchandise. Converting his shirt number to the historic No. 9, Ronaldo has effectively re-branded the business that is his persona — becoming every bit of a sports icon as he is an icon of popular culture.
But Cristiano is not without his critics either. As former Madrid supremo Ramon Calderon criticised David Beckham for being little more than a B-list actor, Ronaldo has been labelled an Oscar-winner due to crumbling at the slightest suspicion of contact. Others find him to be a self-promoting egoist, quick to treat the crowd to a string of flashy tricks just to hear them chant his name.
While some of these criticisms are not without warrant, it is certainly clear that the Portuguese starlet is more than just a pretty face. Love him or hate him, there is no denying CR9’s talent.
As the crown jewel in Florentino Perez’s new Galactico empire, Ronaldo, at just 24-years-old, has already won nearly every individual accolade a professional footballer can win; the FIFA and FIFPro World Player of the Year awards, the Ballon d'Or and the European Golden Shoe are but a few in a long list of personal accomplishments the youngster has collected.
But as both fans and athletes know, individual milestones mean nothing if the team falters. And in this facet, Ronaldo is also at the very top of his class. Having already helped Manchester United take three Premier League titles, a FIFA Club World Cup crown and a Champions League trophy (amongst a plethora of relatively less-coveted titles), Ronaldo has already managed to win some of football’s greatest championships.
As he prepares for his career with Los Blancos, the prospect of how good Ronaldo can be at Madrid is daunting. If his performances in England’s Premier League were impressive, his outings in La Liga promise to be even more spectacular.
Whereas the Premier League is well known for its physically arduous play and more direct style of football, La Liga is touted as the more technically adept league, abound with flourishes and artfully deft flicks.
For Ronaldo, having already experienced the contact of the English game should serve as a tremendous advantage and is likely to prepare him well for the challenges of La Liga, while his superb control of the ball and creativity make him a perfect fit for the Spanish interpretation of the game.
But just how good will Ronaldo really be within the grand scheme of Real Madrid’s history?
At just 24, Cristiano is just beginning to enter the prime of his career, a frightening prospect for La Liga’s defenders. But will he be able to etch his name into the concrete foundation of the Santiago Bernabeu as so many great players have before him?
In his comments leading up to the day of his presentation, CR9 said, somewhat audaciously, that he hoped to become the best player in Real Madrid history.
In just six seasons at Manchester United, he won virtually every title he could have won. But even if Ronaldo is to repeat his performances for Manchester United with Real Madrid, one would still be hard pressed to dub him as the greatest in the club’s history.
Playing alongside the likes of Kaka, Benzema, Raul, Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Higuain, Albiol, and possibly many more high-profile names, Ronaldo will be but one star in a galaxy of Galacticos.
While he may already be used to playing with exceptional players, as Manchester United are no strangers to employing some of the world’s best, playing in the company of another World Player of the Year and many more players of exceptional quality who may soon be vying for that crown is something that Ronaldo has yet not faced.
And then of course there are the timeless names of Raul, Hugo, Puskas, and Di Stefano. To supersede these legends, Ronaldo would not only have to help, but lead Real Madrid to not just a tenth Champions League, but (accounting for the more competitive rigours of the modern game) an 11th and 12th European title as well.
To pose a challenge as the best in the club’s history, he must help Madrid dominate La Liga for years and lead Los Blancos to the Copa del Rey, Champions League and Liga ‘triplete’.
Just this past season, Raul surpassed Di Stefano as the highest goal scorer in Real Madrid’s history, cementing his status as the club’s most iconic figure. If Ronaldo is to hold a candle to such a degree of eminence, he will have to do more than stake a claim to the captain’s No. 7 shirt upon retirement.
Scoring over 300 goals in White would be a start, and while it is highly improbable that Ronaldo will ever be able to repeat the performance of his unprecedented season at Old Trafford, 42 goals-a-season would make that 300-goal mark frighteningly attainable.
Cristiano Ronaldo was welcomed by over 80,000 fans at his official presentation yesterday, besting Diego Maradona's record of 75,000 fans when the Argentine was transferred from Barcelona to Napoli in 1984. Keeping with good company, CR9 has already begun his Madrid career in record fashion. It remains to be seen if he will end it in the same manner.
Cyrus C. Malek, Goal.com
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