There is little doubt Cristiano Ronaldo is the Premier League’s greatest entertainer. Cesc Fabregas, Wayne Rooney and Fernando Torres are his only rivals for flair and, with 27 goals already this season, Ronaldo is way ahead in the striking stakes, never mind all the counterattacks, dribbles and step-overs he also provides.
The debate about the usefulness of step-overs and tricks, along with Ronaldo’s well-publicised penchant for going to ground a little too easily, have combined to obscure his outstanding contribution to English football in the four-and-a-half years he has been at Manchester United.
It is easy to admire Fabregas for his cleverness, Torres or Emmanuel Adebayor for their finishing, Rooney for his skill or Didier Drogba for his persistence, but no one likes to see a show-off or a cheat.
Ronaldo has been perceived as both in his time, sometimes not without reason and, though he has cut out most of the unnecessary frills now, he will probably never be as popular outside Old Trafford as he is with Manchester United supporters.
Comparisons with George Best are entirely valid — Ronaldo is equally good-looking with a complete range of skills, great balance and an eye for goal, as well as the ability to beat people with the ball at his feet — but he breaks down when it comes to public perception.
Best was adored by the whole country. Ronaldo, if he is ever going to manage that level of affection, will have to recover from a bad start. That said, if he continues to improve at his present rate and carries on scoring such spectacular goals, there seems little he cannot achieve.
His free-kick against Portsmouth was as good as anything Roberto Carlos ever produced and his strike rate is better than that of the Brazilian, who became notorious for hogging all the set-piece opportunities, then wasting them.
In terms of football intelligence and the ability to run a game Ronaldo might not delight the purist as much as Kaka, Ronaldinho or Lionel Messi, and he might not be such a forceful figure in front of goal as Samuel Eto’o or the original Ronaldo, yet his goal-scoring prowess — allied to his pace and willingness to go past opponents — makes him a formidable all-round proposition.
Best’s heading ability was a surprise because of his relatively slight stature. Ronaldo is more than 1,8m tall and strong and brave with it. You won’t see Messi or Ronaldinho scoring as many headers from corners or free-kicks. Even if Ronaldo could not play on the wing or strike a dead ball so effectively he would still make a more than useful centre-forward.
None of this was obvious when he arrived from Sporting Lisbon, as Sir Alex Ferguson recently admitted.
It was quickly apparent that Ronaldo possessed all the pace, poise and personality to replace David Beckham, but the goals were an unexpected bonus. As was his confidence at switching wings, drifting inside or striking from set pieces.
Largely thanks to Ronaldo’s contribution, United were able to do without Ruud van Nistelrooy or any other recognised centre-forward for much of last season. And, though Rooney is supposed to run the attacking show for England, he is often reduced to a supporting role at Old Trafford.
Just about the only thing resembling a gap on Ronaldo’s CV is that he has yet to make as big an impression on Europe as he has in England. He has the stage, playing for United in the Champions League and Portugal in the World Cups and European Championships, and he will not be fully recognised around the whole of Europe until he turns in a match-winning performance at the top level.
The biggest players are the ones who stamp their personality on the biggest matches and Ronaldo was as quiet in last season’s FA Cup final as he was when a tired United went out of the Champions League with a 3-0 semifinal defeat to the eventual winners.
But Ferguson says United are stronger this season and it certainly looks as though that is true of Ronaldo. So it should be. He celebrated his birthday last week and it is almost a surprise to discover he is only 23. Even if it is too early to talk of another treble, it is reasonable to suppose Ronaldo’s best is still to come.
All United have to worry about is how to keep hold of him. – Â