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On top of the football world stands a massive giant. A deadly goalscoring machine, a human missile and a complete athlete with plenty of skills and immense talent. A hero in Portugal and a legend at Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the greatest footballers the world has seen.
His name drives football fans crazy, makes goalkeepers dizzy and terrifies opposition defenders. Five Ballon d'Or awards, 4 European Golden Shoes, 3 Pichichi, 4 Champions League trophies and still counting, the Portuguese has arguably been the most dominant player in the universe for the past 10 years. Even Juventus fans could not hide their feelings as they stood up to applaud the incredible winger after he scored one of his greatest goals recently at the Allianz Stadium.
Tearing opposition defenses apart, scoring unimaginable goals and driving his club towards another consecutive Champions League triumph, Ronaldo has made 2018 his own with a lot of fantastic displays.
He has been highly influential, with a lot of impressive performances, especially in the biggest games. In fact, he was the difference for the Los Blancos as they edged past the likes of PSG, Juventus and Bayern Munich to reach another consecutive Champions League final.
With no words to perfectly describe his incredible brilliance, let us just enjoy ourselves as we take a look at the top 5 performances of the Portuguese this season:
#5. Real Madrid vs Sevilla (December 9, 2017)
It was matchday 15 of the La Liga campaign, Real Madrid faced Sevilla FC at the Santiago Bernabeu for the first time this season. Prior to kick off, Cristiano Ronaldo stepped forward and presented his 5th Ballon d'Or award to the fans as everyone cheered and clapped for the incredible genius.
The rest of the story was Ronaldo's dominant display in the match. The Portuguese justified his tag as the best player in the world with his scintillating efforts at the Bernabeu. First, he doubled Real Madrid's lead after Nacho had already put the Los Blancos ahead in just 3 minutes. The winger received a sumptuous through ball from Marco Asensio, which he perfectly sent into the net with a fantastic shot.
The Galacticos continued to control the game, pressing further and attacking intensely. Eight minutes later, Marcelo charged forward and flicked the ball into the box. Jesus Navas handled it and the referee was quick to sight it, awarding Los Blancos a penalty. Cristiano stepped up once again and beat the goalkeeper with a timely shot to double his tally.
Soon, Toni Kroos and Achraf Hachimi both saw the back of the net as Los Blancos took a 5-0 lead into the second-half. After the restart, the Portuguese superstar continued searching for goals. However, with their impending Club World Cup final in the corner, Zidane decided to substitute the attacker later in the game. The whole Bernabeu stood to its feet to applaud the football idol as he departed the pitch.
#4. Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid (September 26, 2017)
It is that true Ronaldo had a slow start to the La Liga campaign this term, but the same cannot be said of the UEFA Champions League. Even though he did not score plenty goals in his first few games in the Spanish top flight, the attacker was seeing the back of the net more consistently in Europe's biggest tournament. Borussia Dortmund was one of the victims of his superb ability in the Champions League this season.
The Bundesliga outfit welcomed Real Madrid to the Signal Iduna Park during the group stages of the competition. Ronaldo was the hero again as Los Blancos secured a vital 3-1 victory in Germany.
Gareth Bale opened the scoring early in the game with a fantastic volley before setting Ronaldo up for the second. The Welshman received a neat pass from Toni Kross, finding Ronaldo inside the box, he centered the ball on the Portuguese, allowing him to score from close range.
However, their 2-goal lead only lasted for 5 minutes as Pierre Emerick Aubameyang pulled one back for the hosts. But, Ronaldo surfaced again and converted a spot-kick later in the game to kill Dortmund's hopes of any comeback as well as securing 3 vital points for the Los Blancos.
#3. Real Madrid vs Girona (March 18, 2018)
Many clubs got slain by Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu this season. Catalan outfit, Girona is also one of them. After defeating Los Blancos in the reverse fixture, the newly promoted club traveled to the Spanish capital to face the Galacticos for the second time.
The Bernabeu witnessed an intense attacking contest between the two clubs. However, it was just a matter of time before Madrid destroyed their opponents, with Ronaldo of course, at the center of events.
The Portuguese was at his lethal best, putting his team ahead shortly after kick-off, but Cristhian Stuani's bullet header made it 1-1 in the 29th minute. The 33-year-old restored the lead and then assisted Lucas Vazquez 14 minutes after the restart. He struck again in the 64th minute to complete his fantastic hat trick that night.
Christian Stuani nodded in Girona's second, Bale scored Madrid's fifth, Juanpe pulled one back before Ronaldo scored the final goal of the match in injury time. Real Madrid won 6-3 with the Portuguese scoring 4 in an overwhelming attacking display at the Bernabeu. What a performance from the winger!
#2. Real Madrid vs Paris Saint Germain (February 14, 2018)
The Santiago Bernabeu witnessed yet another fantastic European night as Neymar-led PSG clashed with Ronaldo-led Real Madrid in the Spanish capital. It was one of the biggest showdowns of the season, with the 2 attacking teams locking horns in an intense duel.
After half an hour of fierce competition, the Parisians went ahead through an Adrien Rabbiot goal. However, they could not take the lead into the second half as Cristiano Ronaldo leveled the tie in the 44th minute. Lo Celso brought down Toni Kroos in the box, resulting in a penalty kick which the Portuguese finished accurately.
Los Blancos continued to put the game under control to limit a rampant PSG side that looked dangerous throughout the 90 minutes. Zidane later introduced Gareth Bale, Marco Asensio, and Lucas Vazquez to change the dimension of the game.
Soon after his introduction, Asensio sent a cross into the box which Areola parried. Unfortunately for the goalkeeper, the ball landed in front of the 5-time Ballon d'Or winner who made no mistake with his conversion from close-range. Three minutes later, Marcelo scored again for the hosts to conclude a vital 3-1 victory for the Galacticos.
#1. Juventus vs Real Madrid (February 14, 2018)
The best performance from Ronaldo this season came up at the Allianz Stadium. Juventus and Real Madrid were paired together for a place in the semifinals of the Champions League this campaign.
The Italians were the first to welcome their opponents at home as Zidane's men traveled to the Italian soil for this important game. As usual, Cristiano got the chance to prove his class and continue entertaining football fans. In fact, this is another match in which the attacker mesmerized for 90 minutes.
It took the Portuguese just 167 seconds to make his presence felt in the Allianz Stadium, scoring the fastest goal in his Champions League career. Marcelo flicked a beautiful pass which found Isco on the left. The playmaker sashayed towards the box before sending a low cross which Ronaldo finished from close range.
A moment of magic followed as the 33-year old scored one of the most impressive goals in his entire career. After an initial effort was cleared, Dani Carvajal sent a brilliant cross into the air. Ronaldo rose high and met it with a terrific overhead kick that kept Gigi Buffon motionless and astonished. Such was the class of the goal that even the Juventus fans acknowledged it with a standing ovation.
Later, Ronaldo liberated Marcelo with a perfect one-two which the Brazilian scored to claim a 3-0 victory for the visitors.
