Cristiano Ronaldo biography: Footballer

Cristiano Ronaldo biography

Portuguese football player

Soccer player

lonympics biography

Playing position Right/ Left Winger / Forward

Career

Andorinha
CD Nacional
Sporting CP

Sporting CP 28 (3)
Manchester United 128 (35)

National team

Portugal 46 (17)

Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of 13 April 2007
National team caps and goals correct
as of March 28, 2007.

Place of birth Funchal, Madeira, Portugal

Funchal , population approximately 140,000, is the capital of the Madeira Islands of Portugal.

Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, OIH, (born 5 February 1985), better known as Cristiano Ronaldo, is a professional Portuguese footballer, who plays for Man United FC and Portugal.

Biography
He was born in Madeira, Portugal, to his mother Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro and his father José Dinis Aveiro. He grew up with a elder brother Hugo, and two elder sisters, Elma and Katia. Katia works as a singer by the stage name Ronalda in Portugal. His second name ("Ronaldo") is relatively rare in Portugal. His parents named him after former President Ronald Reagan because he was his father's favourite actor, and not for political reasons.

Early career
He began kicking a football when three, and when he started primary school at age six, his passion for the sport was obvious. His favourite boyhood team was SL Benfica even though he would later join their rival, Sporting. He first played for amateur team, Andorinha, where his father was the kit man, when he was just eight years old. By 1995, at just ten years of age, Cristiano Ronaldo's reputation was growing in Portugal. Madeira's top two teams, CS Marítimo and CD Nacional were both interested in signing him. Marítimo, the bigger team, missed meeting with Rui Santos manager of Andorinha, and as a result Ronaldo signed for Nacional. After a title winning campaign at Nacional, Ronaldo went on a three day trial with Sporting who signed him for an undisclosed sum.

Sporting Clube de Portugal
Ronaldo joined Sporting's other youth players who trained at the Alcochete, the club's football factory, where he received first-class instruction. Sporting realised that Ronaldo needed more support and arranged for his mother to join him. He made his debut for Sporting against Moreirense and scored two goals. He featured for Portugal in the UEFA Under 17 Championships.

His performances at the UEFA Under 17 championship drew attention of the wider football world. He was first spotted by former Liverpool FC manager Gérard Houllier at 16. Liverpool later declined him because he was too young and needed time to develop to a top footballer. He came to the attention of Sir Alex Ferguson in the summer of 2003, when Sporting Clube de Portugal beat Manchester United 3 – 1 in the inauguration of the Alvalade XXI stadium in Lisbon. Ronaldo demonstrated a ability to play on both wings. After the match, United's players spoke enthusiastically of the young talent they had just played against, saying they would rather have him in their team than play against him in the future.

Man United
Ferguson decided he wanted the youngster for his team, who were in the market for a right-sided midfielder with a departure of David Beckham to Real Madrid; Ronaldo was signed for a fee of £12.24 million. He made his debut for Man United as a 60th minute substitute against Bolton Wanderers at Old Trafford. United were then 1-0 up but with just minutes on the pitch, Ronaldo won a penalty, which Ruud van Nistelrooy saw saved by Jussi Jääskeläinen. However, this did not affect the eventual outcome as the match ended in a 4-0 win to Man United. Ronaldo was handed the No. 7 shirt on his arrival, a shirt number that has belonged to some of the biggest Manchester United legends like George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and David Beckham. He played primarily as a winger for United and can play on either wing.

Holiday to Portugal

In 2006, a row between him and Ruud van Nistelrooy at the Carrington training ground intensified speculation about their roles at the club. However, Ronaldo signed a new deal with United to last through 2010.

Ronaldo occasionally had problems with his temper during games, he was sent off in a game against Manchester City and received a one match ban imposed by UEFA for a gesture towards Benfica fans in a UEFA Champions League match in December 2005. While playing for Portugal in a friendly against Luxembourg he was given a yellow card for pushing Jeff Strasser in the throat in retaliation after Strasser tackled him. Felipe Scolari warned Ronaldo to keep his temper in check during the World Cup.

On 29 October 2005 Ronaldo scored Man United's 1000th Premiership goal, in a 4–1 loss at the hands of Middlesbrough. He bagged a double double in February, with two goals at home to Fulham and another pair at Fratton Park, and also scored in the following Premiership game against Wigan taking his tally to 8 Premiership goals. On 26 February 2006, Ronaldo played in the Carling Cup Final against Wigan in the Millennium Stadium at Cardiff, and scored a goal - taking his season's tally to 10 goals.

He was named FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year 2005, the only award to be voted for by fans. He received a same accolade the following year in 2006. He was also ranked 20th in the FIFA Player of the Year 2005 standings.

Despite the World Cup incident, Ronaldo remained popular with the majority of Manchester United fans when he played (and scored) in his first Premiership match since the 2006 World Cup. Manchester United fans could clearly be heard chanting , there's only one Ronaldo, at various points in the game, in a 5-1 win over Fulham FC

He won the Barclays Player of the Month for November 2006. During a match with Middlesbrough F.C, he was criticised for diving by rival manager Gareth Southgate.

By December 2006, Ronaldo had become one of United's most influential players, scoring six goals in 3 league games to bring his overall tally up to 12 goals. He came on at half time as a substitute against Wigan Athletic and immediately stamped his influence on the match with 2 goals in the space of a few minutes. Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson concedes he would lose his wager with the Portuguese in his current form after setting a target of 15 goals for the season.

In January 2007, Ronaldo was awarded the Barclays Player of the Month Award for a second successive month, becoming a third ever player in the Premiership to do so (after Arsenal's Dennis Bergkamp in 1997 and Robbie Fowler in 1996). On February 4, 2007 in a match against Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Ronaldo was caught in another diving controversy, after winning United a controversial penalty despite seeming to receive little or no contact from Tottenham's Steed Malbranque.

As the end of each season approached, particularly in 2006 and 2007, it became traditional for rumours to start floating that Ronaldo was unsettled at Manchester United and wanted to play for Real Madrid, the rumours frequently originating from the board of Real Madrid who were reported in April 2007 to be willing to pay an unprecedented €80 million (£54 million) for Ronaldo. At the beginning of March 2007 however, Ronaldo, as well as Man United, confirmed they would be negotiating an extension to his current contract. On 13 April 2007, Ronaldo signed a five year, £120,000 a week deal with United, making him the highest-paid player in United's history. He said, "I am very happy at the club and I want to win trophies and hopefully we will do that this season."

During the 2006-07 season, Ronaldo was awarded the titles of PFA Player and PFA Young Player of the Year Awards on April 22, 2007. In addition to winning the two awards (an accomplishment only been matched once - 1977 by Andy Gray), Ronaldo was also named a member of the PFA Premiership Team of the Year, alongside seven of his fellow Man United teammates. On 24 April 2007, Ronaldo completed the treble by winning the PFA Fans' Player of the Year, an award which is given by winning the most votes from fans all over the UK. In addition, he was awarded the 2007 Portuguese Footballer of the Year, and at the beginning of May 2007 Ronaldo was also awarded the Football Writers' Association Award. Ronaldo scored his 50th goal for Manchester United in the game against arch-rivals Manchester City.

International career
Ronaldo made his international debut in August 2003, against Kazakhstan. He scored Portugal's only goal in their 2–1 loss to Greece in the opening match of Euro 2004 and the first goal of the semi final against the Netherlands, which Portugal won 2–1. The final saw a rematch of the opening game of the tournament, and again, Greece emerged victorious.

Ronaldo represented Portugal at the 2004 Summer Olympics, and was the second highest scorer in FIFA World Cup qualification in the European zone with 7 goals. As of 17 June 2005, he has scored 11 goals in 25 appearances for his country.

Ronaldo scored his first World Cup goal against Iran with a penalty kick.

In the Round of 16, he left Portugal's 1-0 win over Netherlands injured after a high tackle by Khalid Boulahrouz.

Ronaldo was named the national team captain for the first time in a friendly against Brazil on February 6, 2007, a day after his 22nd birthday. This move was in honor of Carlos Silva, the Portuguese Football Federation president who had died two days before. Scolari explained, "Mr Silva asked me to make him captain as a gesture. He thought the English fans would give him a difficult time and this was a response. He is too young to be captain, but Mr Silva asked me, and now he is no longer with us."

World Cup incident
On 8 July 2006, after sending off of United team mate Wayne Rooney in the Quarter Final of the 2006 World Cup between England and Portugal, and after much speculation in the English media that he influenced Rooney's red card.

Ronaldo's infamous wink to his manager, sparking speculation he had provoked Man United team mate Rooney to kick him and be sent off. On 9 July, he also told SIC, a Portuguese television channel, he cannot understand all verbal violence and pejorative speculation about him. Ronaldo declared he did not behave wrongly when Portugal defeated England and so cannot be blamed for defending his home nation colours. He added he cannot live and work in a place where people do not like him, so he would be glad to move out of England.

After England's elimination Ronaldo was attacked by the English tabloids. The Sun made a dart board with a picture of his wink. Ronaldo said Rooney was a friend, and that he was not trying to get Rooney a red card. Wayne Rooney was investigated by FIFA's disciplinary committee after being sent off during England's World Cup quarter-final defeat against Portugal, banned for two competitive matches and fined 5,000 Swiss francs (£2,207). After the match Ronaldo admitted reports that Real Madrid were interested in him were correct, and was now more likely to go to the Spanish club or elsewhere over the summer transfer period.

Portugal Villas

On July 5, in the semi final against France, which Portugal lost 1-0, Ronaldo was booed each time he had possession of the ball, by French and English fans alike. Several reports accused Ronaldo of trying to influence the referee by diving. There have been similar accusations in the past, and Ronaldo has been booked for the offence more than once in the English Premiership. Shortly after he dropped back to second place in the online voting for Best Young Player, it was reported by BBC Sport this was partly because of an email campaign by an England supporter urging people to vote for Luis Valencia, who was the second place player to prevent Ronaldo from winning the award. Though the online vote only affected the nomination process, FIFA Technical Study Group awarded the honours to Germany's Lukas Podolski, citing Ronaldo's behaviour as a factor.

Personal life

Ronaldo has done charity work, as well as flying out Martunis, an 11-year-old Indonesian tsunami survivor and his father to attend one of their World Cup qualifiers in June 2005; covering all their expenses. Subsequently all the players contributed money to buy them a house in Indonesia.

Cristiano opened fashion shop "CR7" to his hometown Funchal in February, 2006. His elder sisters are the managers of the shop.

After the two World Cup qualifiers, Ronaldo flew to Indonesia to visit the areas affected by the tsunami and to raise funds. He met the Vice President of the Indonesian Republic Jusuf Kalla and the President of East Timor Xanana Gusmão, and raised £66,000 (about $130,000 USD) by auctioning off his personal sports gear in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Career

Honours with Manchester United
FA Premier League: 2006/2007
FA Cup: 2004
League Cup: 2006

Misspell

Ronnaldo Roonaldo Roneldo