Player of the Season nominees: Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo reacts after scoring his team’s second goal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 Second leg match between Manchester United and Real Madrid at Old Trafford on March 5, 2013 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Getty Images)

Even emotions couldn’t get the better of him as he scored in both legs of the round of 16 clash against former club, Manchester United to knock them out of the competition. He continued his scoring spree, slotting three more goals in a 5-3 aggregate win against the Turkish champions, Galatasaray, taking his side into the semi-finals single-handedly.

But this raging train was derailed emphatically in the semis by Borussia Dortmund (rather Robert Lewandowski), who went on to lose the trophy eventually to local rivals Bayern Munich.

Ronaldo was in spectacular form in the Copa Del Rey as well, scoring four goals in a 6-1 aggregate win against Celta Vigo in the round of 16, including a hat-trick in the second leg. He also scored twice in the second leg of the semi-final against Barcelona to steer his team into the final with a 4-2 aggregate win, where they lost to Atletico Madrid after a span of 14 years.

Ronaldo finished as the second highest goal scorer in the competition behind the Los Colchoneros’ Diego Costa who scored 8 goals, one more than the man in consideration.

‘The sultan of the stepover’ scored 55 goals in the 2012-13 season, including 5 hat-tricks, which by no means is a piece of cake and makes him an able contender for winning the Ballon d’Or. Interestingly, Ronaldo scored 19 right-footed, 16 left-footed, four free-kicks, seven penalties and nine headed goals.

What does the future hold?

Although he has two years remaining on his contract, he does not seem happy at the Bernabeu for the simple reason that despite all the hard-work and passion that CR7 beholds, the results are nowhere close to what both the parties expect.

Real Madrid Chairman, Florentino Perez will be looking to add some firepower alongside Ronaldo while keeping clubs like Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United at bay, who’ll try their best to reunite Ronaldo with his former club in a deal which will set both, the club and the player to the path of European supremacy.

On the contrary, if he decides to stay at the club, it will once again prove his mettle as a footballer with immense willpower, who doesn’t give up, no matter what the situation, as Madrid would look to end their Champions League drought and reclaim the league title from their arch-rivals.

Click here to view the rest of the Player of the Season nominees