372 days of Cristiano Ronaldo

It would not be a misinterpretation to say that the last 372 days have been the best days in Cristiano Ronaldo’s already extravagant life. He was the richest athlete in the world even before he lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy in 2016. Ronaldo was already declared the most famous athlete on Earth by an Algorithm – which takes into account everything from endorsements to social media followers.

Sometimes I wonder, when you have practically everything a person could ever ask for, what more can you aspire for?

I have never been a Cristiano Ronaldo fan but how this man turned himself into a machine, probably the best machine in the world, keeps me wondering and his millions of fans around the world, if I may add.

The man who owns a car that goes 254mph, does 3,000 sit ups a day and loves humming his favorite song ‘I Believe I can Fly’ by R Kelly, is the poster boy of global football at 32.

Ronaldo has won almost everything that is there to be won as a footballer and in the last 372 days, he turned everything he touched into pure gold..

Let’s have a look at everything CR7 has won in the last one year:

UEFA Champions League: May 28, 2016

It all started last year at the San Siro Stadium in Milan. Ronaldo’s Real Madrid defeated city rivals Atletico, securing a record-extending 11th title in the competition.

It was Ronaldo, who scored the winning penalty as Real beat Atletico 5-3 on penalties.

Euro 2016: July 10, 2016

Ronaldo is often compared with Lionel Messi and many even claim that the Argentinean is better than the Portuguese, but statistics have a different story to tell, at least in national colors.

Messi has limited success with the Argentinean national team, although he has added a lot of silverware to FC Barcelona’s collection. On the contrary, Ronaldo has comparatively done well on national duty.

He led Portugal to their first major international trophy when they defeated hosts France 1-0 in the final.

Although the captain suffered a knee injury during the final and was substituted in the 25th minute, his contribution in the previous games of the competition cannot be denied. The former Manchester United frontman was seen guiding his team-mates from the sidelines, with many even hailing him as the coach of the team.

UEFA Best Player in Europe: August 25, 2016

After winning two medals in a span of three months – UEFA Champions League title with Madrid and European Championship with Portugal – Ronaldo was more than a favorite to claim the 2015/16 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award.

The second-time winner beat his club-mate Gareth Bale and Atletico’ Antoine Griezmann to land the award he first picked up in 2013/14.

Ballon d’Or: December 12, 2016

When it comes to Ballon d’Or it always zeroes down to a choice between Ronaldo and Messi.

Some 30 players in all were put forward on the 2016 Ballon d’Or finals list, but the forward topped the poll of 173 journalists worldwide.

Ronaldo, who scored 48 goals in 52 games for club and country during 2016, had previously won the Ballon d’Or three times.

Messi finished second in the competition with Griezmann third.

Club World Cup: December 18, 2016

It was a Hollywood -style win for Madrid over Kashima Antlers in the FIFA Club World Cup final in Yokohama. The Spanish club were 2-1 down when Ronaldo’s hat-trick gave Madrid a dramatic 4-2 win.

Ronaldo ended Kashima’s dream and secured the title for Real for the second time in three years.

FIFA’s Best Player: January 9, 2017

Even though the calendar turned over a new leaf, Ronaldo’s dream run continued. The year 2017 rung in with more accolades for one of the football’s most decorated players.

The soccer superstar added ‘The Best FIFA Men’s Player 2016’ to his trophy cabinet. He received 34.54% of the total vote to beat Messi and Griezmann, again.

Portugal Player of the Year: March 20, 2017

Ronaldo is Portugal’s pride. Even though the footballer receives a lot of love and admiration from all over the world but his own country never shies away from pampering its favorite son.

In his hometown of Madeira, they have an airport, a museum and a hotel named after their local hero Ronaldo.

After winning international accolades, Ronaldo even won the Portuguese Player of the Year award at the annual Gala das Quinas de Ouro football awards earlier this year.

La Liga 2016-17: May 21, 2017

The Spanish league title had eluded Real Madrid for almost five years. Barcelona had stamped their authority on the tournament by winning thrice in last five years.

It was a neck-to-neck fight this year as well, but Ronaldo’s Madrid defeated Malaga 2-0 on the final day of the season and lifted their first La Liga title under Zinedine Zidane.

Ronaldo, who scored 25 league goals in 29 appearances this season, became the first Madrid player in history to score 40+ goals in seven consecutive seasons at the Bernabeu.

Champions League 2017: June 3, 2017

The Portuguese superstar scored twice as Madrid became the first team to defend their Champions League title by beating a disciplined Italian side Juventus 4-1 in Cardiff on Sunday (June 3).

The man who had 600 career goals, also became the top-scorer in the Champions League for the fifth season in a row, with twelve strikes.

Ronaldo, who has been the most vital player in Madrid’s title defense, also became the first player to score in three Champions League finals.

No matter which club you support, you can’t deny that Cristiano Ronaldo is one the greatest soccer players to have walked the earth in flesh and blood. To sum up the ‘Phenomenon’ Ronaldo’s larger-than-life career graph, I would like to quote Real Madrid president Florentino Perez, “Cristiano Ronaldo is priceless!”