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The highlight of the 2021-22 summer transfer window has to be the return of Cristiano Ronaldo to Manchester United. The homecoming was much awaited by the Manchester United fans, yet when it materialized, it felt very unexpected.
Cristiano Ronaldo has developed and matured into a different and more effective player now. During his first spell at Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo created some records and broke some previous ones. He has now returned to United after a period of 12 years.
Cristiano Ronaldo is still the owner of a few records at Manchester United
Not that all the records set by Cristiano Ronaldo at Manchester United were unbreakable. But the club has undergone so many changes in the past 12 years that no player has looked good enough to break some records.
On that note, let's have a look at the five records still held by Cristiano Ronaldo at Manchester United:
#5 Highest transfer fee received for Manchester United
Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Manchester United in the summer of 2003. The Portuguese was only 18 back then. Ronaldo grew and developed into one of the best wingers in the world during his first spell at Manchester United.
His quick feet, nimble footwork and amazing ability to score goals on a regular basis was key to him being the best in the world. The Manchester United star was always making headlines during the memorable first stint.
Cristiano Ronaldo, who spent six years at Manchester United from 2003 to 2009, eventually attracted interest from Real Madrid. In the summer of 2009, Manchester United and Real Madrid came into an agreement for the transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo. Real Madrid paid £80 million for the transfer, a world record fee at the time.
Till date, Manchester United haven't received a fee that high while selling a player. Romelu Lukaku's transfer to Inter Milan resulted in the second-highest transfer fee received by United, which was £74 million. It looks unlikely that this record will be broken any time soon unless a United player has an unbelievable season and decides to move away like Cristiano Ronaldo back then.
#4 Only Manchester United player to win Puskas Award
It was in 2009 that the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) decided to introduce the Puskas award. The award is handed to a male or female football player scoring the most outrageous and technically beautiful goal of the calendar year.
In the 2008-09 Champions League, Manchester United faced FC Porto in the quarter-finals. Cristiano Ronaldo went on to score a peach of a goal in the second leg of this fixture.
Having received the ball from Anderson 40 yards from goal, Cristiano Ronaldo with a minimal backlift took a strike at goal. The result was a rocketing shot into the back of the net, beating the goalkeeper on his right side. The strike was so good that the keeper had no chance.
Cristiano Ronaldo deservedly won the FIFA Puskas Award in 2009 for this sublime strike. Wayne Rooney is the only other Manchester United player to have been nominated for the award for his outrageous overhead kick against Manchester City in the 2010-11 season.
#3 Most goals scored by a Manchester United player in a Premier League season
Manchester United had a beast in Cristiano Ronaldo during his first stint with the Red Devils. Not only was he good at creating, but the former Sporting Lisbon forward was a goal-scoring machine.
Cristiano Ronaldo made 292 appearances for Manchester United during his first stint, scoring 118 goals. In the 2007-08 season, Manchester United went on to achieve a double, winning both the Premier League and the Champions League. Cristiano Ronaldo had his best season as a Red Devil in the 2007-08 season, scoring 31 goals in 34 matches in the Premier League.
Until date, no Manchester United player has bettered Cristiano Ronaldo's 31 goal tally in a single Premier League season. The closest to come to this record has been Wayne Rooney with 27 goals in the 2011-12 season.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo is the only Manchester United star to win the European Golden Shoe
The European Golden Shoe is awarded to the highest goal scorer among the top European leagues every season. Incredibly, Cristiano Ronaldo has won this award four times in his career, once with Manchester United and thrice with Real Madrid.
The mercurial forward won his first European Golden Shoe award whilst playing for Manchester United in the 2007-08 season, becoming the first winger ever to win the award. His 31 goals in the 2007-08 season helped the Portuguese clinch the award.
Daniel Guiza of RCD Mallorca ended up as the runner-up with with 27 goals.
Sadly for Manchester United, ever since Cristiano Ronaldo left, no player has scored enough goals to win this award.
#1 Only Manchester United player to win the FIFA World Player of the Year
The FIFA World Player of the Year award is a very prestigious one. Captains and coaches of international teams along with media representatives select the best player according to them in the previous calendar year.
Cristiano Ronaldo was awarded the FIFA World Player of the Year award in 2008 courtesy of his fabulous performances for Manchester United during the 2007-08 season. The Portuguese won with 935 points, while Lionel Messi finished second with 678 points and Fernando Torres finished third with 203 points.
It takes someone of high caliber and consistency to win the FIFA World Player of the Year. Surprisingly, no Manchester United player has ever challenged for this award ever since Cristiano Ronaldo won it in 2008. The award was merged with the Ballon d'Or from 2010 to 2015, while starting in 2016 it has been named 'The Best FIFA award".
With United not playing at the same level as they did under Sir Alex Ferguson, contesting for such a prestigious individual award has been a distant dream for their players. But now that Cristiano Ronaldo is back at Manchester United, the fortunes could change for the Red Devils.
