The Greatest Injury Comeback Ever?
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- Опубликовано: 26 сен 2024
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Il Fenomeno. Ronaldo, the original Ronaldo. A phenomenon, not just for his goal scoring abilities, but for his miraculous recovery from a horrific career ending injury.
This is the story of that injury, and Ronaldo’s return to World Cup winning glory. Told by Seb Stafford-Bloor. Illustrated by Philippe Fenner.
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#Ronaldo #Brazil #Inter
Every ballon D’Or winner receives three copies of the trophy. In 2002 Ronaldo gave one to his dad, kept one and gave the third to Nilton Petrone, the physio who helped him to recover. Nilton is the physio for my hometown club in Rio: Fluminense.
Legend
whaat? that's great
This is an amazing fact, thanks for letting us know.
Love this
This is awesome
Shame that a human body was never meant to withstand the sheer amount of speed, power, and talent that R9 had
God made him like that
@@suspendeduserr no such thing as god, it seems
He was literally so good his body couldn't maintain it. Crazy
Gareth Bale in today's world
He was also 6 foot and not the skinniest. Gravity was not nice to his body type.
An injured Ronaldo is one of the best forward of his era. An un-injured Ronaldo is probably the best player ever seen on a football pitch
He’s crazy good 😊
Thats crazy , he was ahead of everyone even with a killing carrer injury
His era?
He’s the greatest Forward of All Time!
Amen to that. R9 is spectacular🎉. The greatest player i have ever seen in my life
Any body 25 or younger won't know just how good this fella was. His highlights don't do him justice .. an absolute privilege to watch him play.
We get it, you’re old 🤣
💀the fact that I know how good he was and you say this
@@SpaceAce1993 even people who are 27 didn't see him play he's prime was so long ago
Fortunately television was available that time so majority people know he was as good as Maradona.. however there was no internet and social media that time..
The most naturally gifted player I have ever seen! Scored goals for fun in a period when football was far more defensive and harder to score. The fact so many people (me included) argue he's the greatest player ever despite having his career ravaged by multiple horrific injuries, says all you need to know about how special R9 was!
As much as I love this Ronaldo and is up there with one of my alltime players, tough to argue that he's better or even more gifted than Ronaldinho.
Adriano was considered in brazil to be the most gifted player. Sadly didn't result in the records.
@Steffon Gibbs it's crazy not even counting the amount of talent Brazil has, the amount of talent that never panned out is astonishing.
@@maximus1318able yh true bro, he was definitely the most talented player ever but because of the injuries i have to edge dinho as the GOAT
@FREE the Uyghurs & Palestinians I can still remember Ronaldinho at Barca. Only 2 players ever to get a standing ovation at the Bernabeu, him and the Greatest of then all Maradona. I can also still remember the feeling when he went to Milan.
Speed, Strength & Skill
The 3 S’s of Ronaldo Nazario…In his prime, a 1 man wrecking ball for oppositions..
Including Shooting as well, you'd get 4
Henrik Larsson's is also up there. Had his leg snapped in half and was to end his career or at least be in recovery for 18 months. He came back in half of that and kept his pace and sharpness and went on to have a 50 goal season and eventually join Barcelona and Man United.
Mate his recovery was even quicker than that I'm sure, he defied medical science!
Important point. Great comment.
Henke the beast
Good call... different style of player from R9, but everything about him... his commitment, his relentlessness, his passion, his intelligence... made him a fan favorite wherever he went. As a Barça fan, he defined a role. Whenever Barça needs a game-changing player through his clever runs and finishing... we ask for "a new Larsson" or someone in the "Larsson role" 💓 it is a big shame that his last experience as coaching staff didn't end as well as his playing career 💔
Hi is a god tbf
Wonderful wonderful story. The reaction on the pitch after his knee exploded was unique. Everyone was horrified, not an ounce of tribalism, just collective shock. He was that big in football (and Italy) at the time.
Pre injuries Ronaldo, particularly that year at Barcelona and his first at Inter was the greatest football player I have ever seen in my lifetime. Cristiano and Messi will probably correctly always be ranked higher for the totality of their careers, but for that all too brief moment in time, there has never been anyone like the fenomeno and there probably never will be again. He was the freakiest of all the freaks and an anomaly in that his actual footballing peak came through circumstance before he even had his 23rd birthday a time when most players are only starting to hit their stride.
Younger generations who never saw him week in and week out at that time and maybe caught the tail end of his career will never understand. Everytime he got the ball every single person in the stadium rose to their feet in anticipation. He was a best of all time level goalscorer who made goals for himself out of nothing like Messi, he had more pace and power than a prime Cristiano and he was a Ronaldinho level entertainer all rolled into one. The fact that he never reached what should have been his actual peak at 27/28 on because of his injuries and still managed to reinvent himself into a completely different player and still be one of the best of all time is a testament to how good he actually was.
“Younger generations” stop it old man people know about Ronaldo welcome to RUclips
It’s probably hard for anyone under 30 to appreciate this but literally every kid knew who Ronaldo was and would always be him in the playground. This was despite maybe only seeing him play a few times.
If you knew 1 footballer's name during the 90s, it was Ronaldo. Kids everywhere in the world grew up chanting Ronaldo Ronaldo.
Yep! I remember the 2002 World Cup and how sensational he was. However, not following Italian football, I didn't realise how bad his injury had been. Watching this has put 2002 in a whole new light!
@@devononair I promise you as good as he was in the 2002 World Cup he was 3 times better before !
Absolutely true.
@@Banzybanz The name Ronaldo has been immortalized in football it is actually insane. We have 2 (3 if you count Ronaldinho) that impacted the game in such a way that you can make an argument why each of them is a GOAT in football. The next kid named Ronaldo, making a breakthrough, got impossible standards to live up to lol
The best attacking player I'd ever seen. When I saw him go down injured in his own, I thought "it's over".
To see him come back like that in the World Cup, pure joy
We enjoyed Ronaldo at Real Madrid, and while he was still q world-class asset post-injury, he was never really as good as what he had shown in his earlier days (especially in Barcelona). Still, he bagged the 2002-2003 La Liga almost single-handedly.
And of course the hatty at the Dream Theater that would change the game forever
@@reintaler6355 why it changed the game forever? I heard that was the match that made Abramovich decide to buy Chelsea. Is that why?
@@luismendes5868 that match was against united . Hoes Chelsea involved there ?
@@grealish2234 I have seen a few headlines saying that this match and Ronaldo's hat-trick changed football bc then Abramovich decided to buy Chelsea and football was never the same (prices went up, new owners, clubs that didnt win much becoming powerhouses, etc)
@@grealish2234 seriously, Im not trying to offend you or knock you, but I just have to say that I absolutely hate your club and everything it stands for. A state project from Abu Dhabi with absurd financial doping.
With that being said, your question and the fact that you appear to be a Grealish fan, just emphasizes the jokes made about City fans, impressionable children who know very little about pivotal moments in football history and think Shity is some sort of great club. Anyway, ended my rant on here
From 1996 to 1999 he was absolutely unstoppable! as a youngster watching him come along was unreal!! only Messi could compare to R9 since as far as defenders being in total fear, Only Cristiano & Henry was as dominant physically
1995-1998 but yes you are correct he was the best ever during this time
@@CJVP99 96-99 I’m not counting Holland & he got injured in 99
Goosebumps.
A generational talent and a Legend of the game.
R9 is irreplaceable. A one-of-a-kind phenomenon.
The fascinating thing about him was that
even with all those burdens affecting his game after 2004.
(hypothyroidism and 2 damaged knees)
he somehow managed to keep averaging at least 1 goal every 2 games in 3 different countries till the end of his career at 34.
He Kept scoring in Clasico’s, scored in the Milan derby, scored in the Brazilian Cup final. His talent is underrated.
I don't think anyone underrates Ronaldo. He's widely regarded as one of the greatest of the game, and certainly the best center forward in History.
Lol Ronaldo Nazario is NOT underrated. Everyone who knows a bit about football will tell you that he is one of the greatest of all time
One of his highlight reels shows him doing the fastest, cleanest la roulette I've seen. It makes Zidane's la roulettes look slow and obvious. The guy was masterful.
He used to do elasticos while running.
His stepovers were on a different level too.
Zidane talks about it as well
He also did the elastico better then Ronaldinho
@@asdflkj2041 True..
The real Ronaldo....the legend. He made us dream to be great footballers, to do those soccer tricks. To me, he remains to be the best footballer
He was never quite the same post-injury. Still great, but more controlled in his explosiveness. The only other player I can recall around that time with similar injury and successful return was Ruud van Nistelrooy. Poor Casiraghi didn't enjoy the same comeback.
Van Nistelroy's injury was an ACL - granted a very tough injury - but Ronaldo's was much, much worse. Snapping your patella tendon is a much more rare injury. There was no precedent of a player doing it and even coming back to play international football. Paolo Futre did ok but he was a shadow of himself.
Shearer is a close second place for best comeback from injury. Like Ronaldo, he had to completely change the way he played and was still banging goals in until he turned 35.
his injury is the biggest heartbreak in football ever.
in the goat discussion most people focus on stats and trophies, but R9s comeback is not talked about a lot. people often talk about him because of his brilliant pre-injury feats, but I think his comeback really displayed his greatness. not only was he out for such a long time, but the ability to change his game at such a young age does show a huge amount of football intelligence. many players have to adapt their game later in their career and can depend more on their experience by playing smarter. R9 had to this in his early 20's after being sidelined for something like 2 years.
What an incredible player. Made my childhood watching football really something else.
Can't believe the timing of this video. I am doing a presentation for my university assessment next week about R9, this will be of great help for me during the presentation.
R9 the absolute goat 🐐 the things he was doing pre injury were out of this world he was Mbappe, Neyamer, Messi & CR7 all rolled into one player…the fact that he was still able to win the WC and win player of the year post injury just shows the ridiculous talent he had
Messi as well? Come on now, we never saw R9 msje the kind of defence splitting passes messi can make or scoring the free kicks messi has scored
@@dendenn7383 you probably a kid or young if you said this. back then everyone want to be ronaldo. people back then even copy his hairstyle during world cup bro.
@@dendenn7383 lol when did you start watching football again
@@sorryminati4719 mid to late 90s lol...are you seriously trying to say R9 could pass the ball as well as Messi can? When did you start watching football lol
@@dendenn7383 Ronaldo was a centre forward. He had an unrivalled mixture of strength, balance, pace and skill. He flew past defenders and was an excellent finisher. He wasn't a bad passer, he linked up well in the box, but passing wasn't his game. I don't think anybody is ever going to try and claim Ronaldo was a good passer, let alone on a par with Messi. What you been sniffin?
I giovanissimi hanno visto solo qualche video e non si rendono conto che emozioni destava Ronaldo il Fenomeno...Si era sempre nella trepida attesa di una sua " giocata" ...quando prendeva palla calava il silenzio in tutto lo stadio, e iniziava li spettacolo più bello del mondo..!! Ronaldo il Fenomeno magico unico e irripetibile!!!
Ronaldo is my favourite player of all time. Thank you so much for re-telling the story of his amazing comeback! It means alot
I honestly believe that neither Messi or Cristiano would be able to come back from a similar injury at the same age. R9 was, literally, built different. He was tall, strong, fast and agile in a way I think only Adriano was able to match after him.
In some parallel reality, R9, Adriano, Ronaldinho and Kaká all played together being fit and with a cohesive coach to win a world cup.
Ronaldo Nazario's Trajectory makes me think about what would happen to the careers of Pelé, Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi and other legends of the beautiful game if it weren't for the adequate physiotherapeutic treatment they receive and seek constantly (and even with great profissionals on their side, they always had to count on a certain amount of luck too)
I sometimes think what if Ronaldo Nazario was around as a player today. With better developments in strength and conditioning and rehab could some of his injury woes been avoided?
could have been possible
BTW love your videos!
@@sorryminati4719 thanks a lot!! Appreciate it 🙏
I would think so. Players in those days didn't have individually tailored programs, atleast not to the same extent as today. So for pre-season everybody would just do the same stuff. But still, with his explosive playing style, he would be prone to injuries sooner or later.
He would have scored a lot of goals simply because the ball dynamics post 2010 world cup made it a lot easier to score goals, the game started to protect players a lot more meaning players didn't get away with rough challenges and he played in the toughest best league pre peak and still made it look easy whereas messi naturally struggled against physical/definsively minded teams i.e. the chelsea team with makele, lampard drogba etc.
Remember watching that game vs Lazio live because I heard Ronaldo would be back and crying my eyes out after those 5 mins of playing time.
In most of the clips you see on RUclips today, it doesnt grasp the happening fully.
If you watched live you'd even on TV hear Ronaldo's scream that you could feel in your bones and the instant silence of thousands of people in the stadium that followed.
Everybody knew what had happened. They know nobody but especially Ronaldo himself, would ever see the old Ronaldo again.
He redeemed himself through pure talent of which even after these injuries he had enough of to be the best in the world, but he was never the same after that injury.
He has been the most talented player ever and there is no doubt in my mind that if said injuries never happened, that he wouldve been the greatest.
Got goosebumps from watching this. He was such an amazing player and the one who made me fall in love with football as a kid.
Same here. For me, he is the god of football! None better.
Yes, this video hit heavy on the nostalgia feeling!
He's the only player who - even watching you tube clips of him a hundred times over, gives me chills.
If R9 never got injured he would have been the greatest of all time.
the most complete footballer I've ever seen. would've been undisputed GOAT without the injuries
R9 Just existing Defies Everything He was too good to comprehend
Ronaldo Luis Nazario De Lima. My all-time favourite footballer. I remember watching him as a kid in the 2000s, but that wasn't even PRIME R9. God bless him
The man that made me fall in love with the game.
The guy that made me love the word striker
Injuries or not... This is the greatest player i have ever seen... I respect all the greats... Baggio, Zidane, Dinho, Messi, Cristiano.... Ronaldo R9 was levels above these greats.
lol, haha
maybe cristiano but no one is close to messi
@@thewolverine7516 you cleary never watch R9 live
@@reizalash1443 nah , man I watched him, maybe you need to come out of your bubble of nostalgia
Today's stats merchants do not know how phenomenal R9 was . He was more than world-class The perfect definition of a striker
The GOAT.... man was Unstoppable
The Final 2002 was the Clash of the Titans Khan Vs Ronaldo.
It was heartbreaking for a German Teenage boy but we didn´t deserve beeing in the Final in the first place ^^
My favourite football comeback is Marcin Wasilewski. In 2009 it was heavily rumoured that he will be moving to a Premier League Club from Anderlecht. But on 30 August 2009 he had open leg fracture after horrendous foul committed by Axel Witsel. Wasilewski made his return on 8 May 2010, but after such a horrific injury interest from Premier League clubs faded away so he stayed in Anderlecht. But in 2013 he secured one year contract with Championship club after a trial and become club regular. They managed to advance to Premier League (which was Wasilewski's dream) and Wasilewski signed one year contract extension and he was regular in a Premier League club. His club managed to stay in Premier League and he got next one year extension. I did not mention this English club name because it was... Leicester City F.C. I think you know what is going to happen... In 2013-14 season Leicester City won Premier League, although Wasilewski was only substitute in this season although he was one match short to get the medal. But even being a bench player due to his contribution in the dressing room, Leicester gave him another one year extension. In 2017 he returned to Poland and played in Wisła Kraków. He ended his career in 2020, aged 40.
tl;dr After career ending injury Marcin Wasilewski made a comeback, secured transfer to Championship club, which manage advance to Premier League (Wasilewski dream) and after few season he won Premier League (that club was Leicester City). He ended carrier 11 years after the injury, aged 40.
Greatest comeback injury from the greatest player of all times
Yeah no one like him, absolute Legend ❤️❤️
Talking about injury comebacks, it's worth mention Martín Palermo, mainly because his "movie-like" career. Playing for Boca Juniors, he tore a ligament of his right knee, and scored his 100th goal before leaving the pitch. After six months of recovery, Boca's coach Carlos Bianchi put him in the bench for the 2nd leg of a Copa Libertadores quarterfinal against River (yes, a Superclásico), then he went into the pitch and scored the third goal of the match sealing the series. Then Boca won the Libertadores and Palermo scored two goals in the first six minutes of the match against Real Madrid for the Intercontinental Cup.
il fenomeno 🙏🙏 That 2002 world Cup final was unforgettable
dude was so fast and strong, that human capacities were exceeded
2002 seemed like the pinnacle of football. Just look at the teams the likes of Brazil, France and England had
England?
Nelson Jr yes Ashley Cole, Ferdinand, beckham, scholes, Owen all great players
Heeyo, big fan from austria here! I‘d really love for you to consider making a video about Ernst Happel, one of the greatest managers of all time, but dramatically underrated/unknown in modern football. He was, after all, the first manager to win the Champions League (or whatever it was called back then) with two different clubs, alongside many league titles in several european countries and a runners up medal with the Netherlands in a controversial 1978 World Cup final. He was a real cult hero aswell, having a tense realtionship with the media throughout his career, whilst members of his family are recognised by fans in countries like belgium until today. He had tragic spells as a player, albeit being one of austrias best in that era, but redemned his reputation as a manager for generations to come (austria‘s national stadium is named after him for example, and whilst there are many pleades to build a modernised one, the maine issue for politicians seems to be the naming rights, not wanting to let his legancy slip away). Anyway, i just think it would make a great video of one of this sports unsung heroes, who had titles and attitude in abunce. Take care, love your vids ✌️
1. one tournament can immortalize a player thats the magic of sports
2. context is important.
It's interesting that prior to this, I watched your piece on Bayern and Qatar. Oliver Khan was mentioned in that. My abiding of Ronaldo is the quick stepovers in front of Khan in the Wolrd Cup final of 2002 before slotting the ball past him. Beautiful!
Love how king eric said, human will evolve and become immortal 👏🏼 i can now see future generations in much safer hands
imo the greatest player ever
he was simply the most devastating player I had watched
Inter should not have rushed him back. Nowadays people don't take risks with these kind of injuries. They will let the player sit out the whole season. And Inter try to get him back in 4 months. But that's the Warrior in Ronaldo. He changed his entire playing style once he did come back. He was more of a traditional number 9 but could still give you glimpses of what he did before. And from 2002-05 he scored 20 league goals everytime for Real Madrid.
So glad i was able to watch him play at an age where i could appreciate his skill. Legend
Brilliant. This was heart warming. And at the same time maddening. It makes you wonder what could have been
That line about his kneecap ending up in the middle of his thigh... that gave me a sensation of horror that nothing ever has done before and likely ever will.
He was never the same after the injury. his prime is all of his professional career until hes injury. kids don't understand how amazing R9 was, kids today puts the name of Zidane next to him is an insolent to R9 and football world. R9 was the GOAT. and all this at the age of 20.
The saddest thing in football is the young generation forgetting how good R9 is. He was a monster of a footballer.
My first memory of football is watching him in the 2002 World Cup final where he kicked two goals. An absolute icon of football.
The first player to have captivated me as a kid. I was obsessed. R9 the best striker of all time
Truly, Ronaldo was something else! One of the absolute best players I've ever seen.
It's nice seeing a video that ends with good times about him.
Its not often that a video makes me tear up but by god that was beautiful
Could you please do a video on the williams brothers at bilbao and maybe their youth academy/club philosophies in general?
And also could you 🌠answer my question🌠 = where did posession come from in football? Like who started counting, why, how did they count? How do they count now?
I was 5 when we won the 2002 World Cup, and when Ronaldo showed up to the match against Turkey displaying that hideous haircut, all the kids in my school did it as well!
Great memories...
Obrigado, Fenômeno!🇧🇷
Ronaldo R9 is for me, the greatest striker i have seen. Was a real privilege and joy to watch
Beeeeautiful work!
I'm still crying for that Coppa italia final against Lazio... I was so shocked for Ronnie😞 Ronaldo9 per sempre nella storia dell'Inter🔵⚫️❤️
He was too good for his own body to handle.
The one and only R9
You should do a video on Arsenal comeback this season! From 19th to 4th!!! 😳😲👍
Really not that much to say. They had hard games to start and a bunch of injuries. They were always gonna have at least a decent season.
It's not even that great of a deal, they were the only club from big 6 with no European football.
Imagine having the career R9 had and still thinking he only partially fulfilled his potential - that should give some perspective about the talent he was. Il Fenomeno for a reason
Had a similar kneecap injury playing Hackey Sack. I was on crutches for 4 months... From a game of Hackey Sack... Not exactly heroic.
Seriously though, Ronaldo El Fenomeno is for me the greatest modern player tragedy. Had his knee's not exploded on him he'd be a serious contender in the GOAT conversation. He had all the necessary Trophies, 2 World Cups, 2 Copa Americas, 1 UEFA Cup (UCL Equivalent), 1 Confederations Cup, 2 La Ligas, Spanish & Super Cups, 2 x Ballon d'Ors, etc. Multiple scoring titles too. ALL he needed was say 10 years without serious injury and he'd definitely be in the Pele, Maradona, Messi, conversation.
I just paused the tifo podcast to watch a tifo video. It's safe to say they're putting out good content these days!
Wish I got to watch this guy in in his time. I was only 1 at the time he won the world cup in 02.
My current favourite player is Eden Azzar. Knowing what R9 went through, Idk. Glimour of hope that Hazard can still be pivotal for a good side in Europe after Madrid.
@Abdul Raheem I wasn’t comparing their qualities my friend. However to say Hazard has no hunger when his club manager ignores him is a bit harsh imo. Stuff he did for his National team in WC 2018 and how he carried Chelsea says a lot about him. Just unlucky with injuries at the start of Real.
@Abdul Raheem He may be past his best but did you see the squad Carlo put up for Clasico? If that doesn’t reek of agenda, I don’t know what else to say. For Guti a Madrid legend to raise that concern the other day… It’s something more than a football reason Abdul.
Ronaldo Fenomeno is the greatest CF in history without doubt
beautiful piece
The Best Football Player since Coloured TV..... The Phenomenon
He is my favorite player ever, acknowledging he may not be the best, but ill die on that hill. I'm 25 so I only got to see the late madrid years and the 2006 world cup. Still, he is the best striker I have ever seen. Just an amazing player.
I watched him when he played at Barcelona. i never see someone like since. the best ever. and all of this at the age 21 pre injury
Sad to think the game lost two of the biggest talents in such a short space of time and they still came back and were incredible. (Del piero & Ronaldo) Maybe in a different world, Del Piero and Ronaldo didn't get injured and the Juve & Inter rivalry was at another level. People forget just how good ADP was at this time, especially the season before the injury.
This speaks a lot about Ansu Fati: His explosive play, Agility, Speed, Strength, goal scoring ability, and finishing.
Both had similar injury due to their nature of play, but certainly, Ansu Fati is built for greatness.
Original Ronaldo was phenomenal, something that no one had ever seen
Could you do a video on Arsenals new form and tactical set up. Seeing as they’ve taken the most points out of their last 10 games compared to the rest of Europe, and the fact the last video focusing on tactical set up was focused on ‘the bagel formation’ 😂
His Human Knee couldn’t sustain the Power of God Talent.
To comeback from a career ending injury and to score 8 goals in 1 World Cup(2 in the Final), wins the World Cup and then wins The Balon d Or is beyond Mesmerizing!
Before he was 25, he had already completed football and done the impossible.
-Younest Balon d Or winner in History(And in the Toughest Era)
People act like he had to do more to be considered the GOAT…He is the GOAT
Injuries or not, trophies or not, he is the greatest player ever, and certainly the best striker ever.
What a warrior and legend of the game.
My 🐐
My favourite striker of all time
Still best striker ever
Any guy in comments sayin' "we forgot" is a fluke.
My hero
The story of R9 is truly like a Greek epic. The monstrous physical capacity, the mind-blowing skills, the genius mind - bursting onto the scene in a way no other player - including Messi, CR7, Neymar, Mbappe - have matched - then crashing and burning in his second season in Seria A with an injury that nobody, to that point, had successfully recovered from. He then shows that he is more than a great player - that in fact, he is a hero by overcoming the injury and electrifying the world in Japan 2002.
Ronaldo is more than a man - he's a myth, an emotion - a 'phenomenon' - in the end, Ronaldo is pure joy, heart and brilliance - R9 was, is and always will be the pure spirit of football.
Much respect for R9 but do not forget neymar's broken back in the world cup 2014 following his best season with barcelona where he won the triple and played some of the best football the world has seen…42 Goals. 18 Assists. 5 Titles - Joan Gamper Trophy/Copa del Rey champion/La Liga champion/Champions League champion/FIFA Club World Cup champion.
The greatest what if in sport imo. Had his injuries been managed better his prime may well have never been matched again. Talent wise he is there with the very very best
Rare footballer probably won’t ever see another like him
He never was the same player again though. He'd adapted his game. Later Ronaldo was great but early Ronaldo was sublime.
My football idol
A lot of people say he wasn't as quick in Madrid but MANunited fans know better with that hat-trick he had
Just imagine how much can he accomplish if those injury never occured.
Greats like Ronaldo have more than just great physical ability - they are also intensely competitive. That will to win likely drove him to overcome those knee injuries as much as anything.
Last I was this early Man. United was still scary
Aaron Ramsey was brilliant when he came back from his broken leg (Ryan Shawcross, Stoke).