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Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the greatest players to have graced the game. Despite turning 36 this year, Cristiano Ronaldo shows no signs of stopping any time soon as he continues to be the best player for his club and country.
During a stellar near two-decade career, the Portuguese ace has scored goals and won honors aplenty. To name a few, the 5-time Ballon d'Or winner is the all-time top scorer for Real Madrid and Portugal.
Strong in the air and two-footed, Cristiano Ronaldo loves to duel with the meanest of defenses and come up trumps, mesmerizing teammates, fans, critics and opponents alike.
On that note, let's have a look at ten of the most memorable moments of Cristiano Ronaldo's illustrious career.
#1 'That' screamer against Porto (2009)
Playing his sixth season in the Champions League, Cristiano Ronaldo had tallied a meager 12 goals in 49 games heading into the 2008-09 quarter-final at Porto.
After the first leg in Manchester ended 2-2, Porto had the advantage in the second leg thanks to their two away goals at Old Trafford. However, Cristiano Ronaldo had other ideas.
In only the sixth minute of the game, Cristiano Ronaldo received the ball near the center of the pitch and let fly a 40-yard screamer that rested in the bottom corner of the Porto net.
The strike proved decisive as there were no more goals in the game and Manchester United advanced to the semi-finals with a 3-2 aggregate win.
Cristiano Ronaldo would later call it the 'best goal' he had scored at the time.
Of course, he has scored a lot of fabulous goals since then, but that Porto strike would remain something special.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the first player to score for two different winning teams in Champions League finals (2014)
Six years after scoring for Manchester United in their win over Chelsea in the 2008 Champions League final, Cristiano Ronaldo was at it again, this time for a different team.
In the first-ever all-Spanish Champions League final in Lisbon in 2014, Cristiano Ronaldo was one of three Real Madrid scorers after extra time as Los Blancos beat Atletico Madrid to win the much-awaited La Decima.
That strike made Cristiano Ronaldo the only player in Champions League history to score for two different winning teams in the final.
#3 Cristiano Ronaldo becomes Real Madrid's all-time top-scorer (2015)
Barely six years after arriving at Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo scored against Levante in a 2015-16 La Liga game to overtake Raul (323) and become the club's all-time top scorer in all competitions.
During this period, Cristiano Ronaldo scored a staggering 50 goals in a season on five occasions; 61 goals in the 2014-15 campaign being his most prolific for the club.
By the time he left Real Madrid for Juventus in the summer of 2018, Cristiano Ronaldo had amassed a stunning 450 strikes in only 438 games, winning 16 titles along the way.
#4 Wins the European Championships with Portugal (2016)
Twelve years after missing out on the European Championships as a teenager, as Portugal were beaten by unfancied Greece at home in the final, Cristiano Ronaldo won the quadrennial competition by beating France in the 2016 Paris final.
Earlier in the tournament, Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty against Austria but scored a brace in a 3-3 draw with Hungary. He also netted in the 2-0 win over Wales in the semi-finals, while also providing an assist in the Round of 16 extra-time win over Croatia and the winning penalty against Poland.
In the biggest match of his international career, Cristiano Ronaldo lasted barely thirty minutes on the field, as a Dmitri Payet tackle injured his left knee. A tearful Ronaldo twice tried to rejoin the action with a heavily-strapped knee before hobbling off the field.
About an hour later, Cristiano Ronaldo cried for a third time on the night, this time shedding tears of joy, as Portugal sealed a nervy 1-0 extra-time win over France to become the newest European champions.
#5 Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the first player to score 100 Champions League goals (2017)
After a slow start in the Champions League - Cristiano Ronaldo took 27 games to open his account in the competition - the Portuguese ace picked up the pace, especially after joining Real Madrid.
Cristiano Ronaldo produced a staggering seven consecutive campaigns of at least ten Champions League goals, the sixth of which made him the first player to breach the 100-goal mark in competition history.
The then-Real Madrid striker arrived at the landmark after completing a hat-trick against Bayern Munich in the 2016-17 quarter-finals. Los Blancos went on to become the first team in the Champions League era to successfully defend their title.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored another hat-trick, against Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals before netting a brace against Juventus - his current club - in the final to win his fourth title in the competition.
#6 'That' goal against Juventus (2018)
Cristiano Ronaldo scored arguably one of the best goals in the competition's history in the first leg of Real Madrid's Champions League quarter-final against Juventus.
Meeting a cross from the right with the cleanest of contacts, Cristiano Ronaldo leapt up an incredible one-and-a-half feet in the air before rocketing a sumptuous overhead volley past Gianluigi Buffon.
The goal, which showcased the finest of Cristiano Ronaldo's athleticism and aerial prowess, endeared the Juventus faithful so much that they accorded the Portuguese a rare standing ovation.
Interestingly, Cristiano Ronaldo was once adjudged to have a better vertical leap (78cm) than an average NBA basketball player (71cm).
Real Madrid ran out 3-0 victors on the night before a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty in the second leg helped the Blancos see out the tie 4-3 on aggregate.
#7 First player to win five Champions League titles (2018)
Arguably enjoying his greatest Champions League season in 2017-18, Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to score in all six group-stage games in that edition of the competition.
Far from being done, he continued his scoring streak to four more games, scoring in both legs of Real Madrid's Round of 16 and quarter-final wins. The last of those strikes came against Juventus, whom he would join later that summer.
Although Cristiano Ronaldo failed to add to his staggering 15-goal tally by drawing blanks in the semi-finals and the final, the then 33-year-old created more history in the competition.
With Real Madrid beating Liverpool 3-1 in the final, Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to win five Champions League titles since the competition's inception in 1992.
That game, incidentally, happened to be his last in Real Madrid colors as Cristiano Ronaldo left Spain to join Italian giants Juventus a few weeks later.
#8 Cristiano Ronaldo's memorable hat-trick against Spain in the World Cup
Cristiano Ronaldo began his campaign at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia with a bang. His fabulous hat-trick helped Portugal conjure a thrilling 3-3 draw with former champions Spain in their tournament opener.
A penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo provided Portugal an early lead before the Portuguese put his team in front once again before half-time after Spain leveled proceedings.
With the former champions scoring twice in the second half, Cristiano Ronaldo scored a sumptuous free-kick to force a share of the spoils as a thrilling all-Iberian derby ended all square in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.
Earlier in the game, his first strike made Cristiano Ronaldo the only player to score in eight consecutive major tournaments.
Incidentally, it was the first time in 51 games, Cristiano Ronaldo's team didn't win despite a hat-trick from the player.
#9 Cristiano Ronaldo scores his much-awaited first Juventus hat-trick (2019)
Cristiano Ronaldo stayed true to his tall promise of scoring thrice in the game, as the Portuguese superstar brought up his second Champions League hat-trick against Atletico Madrid.
In the process, he helped Juventus overturn a 0-2 first-leg deficit to win 3-2 on aggregate to move into the 2018-19 quarter-finals. The trio of goals also brought up Cristiano Ronaldo's much-awaited first hat-trick in the Bianconeri colors.
Cristiano Ronaldo began Juventus's comeback on the night with a header midway through the first half. Another shortly after the interval brought Juventus on level terms in the tie.
Just as extra time loomed, the Portugal captain scored an 86th minute penalty for his record-equalling eighth hat-trick in the competition to help his team complete the comeback.
#10 Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the first European player to score 100 international goals
Continuing his blistering start to the 2020-21 campaign, despite missing a few weeks after contracting COVID-19, Cristiano Ronaldo scored against Sweden in a UEFA Nations League game to become the first European player to score 100 international goals.
Playing his 165th game in Portuguese colors, Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at the landmark by scoring a sumptuous free-kick. He scored another on the night to help Portugal win 2-0.
Cristiano Ronaldo (102) is now only seven away from equalling Iranian legend Ali Daie (109) for the most goals in international football.
Incidentally, six years ago at the same stadium, a Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick sealed Portugal's berth in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
