LINEUP |
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|---|---|
| Full Name | Ronaldo Luis Nezario de Lima |
| Date of Birth | 18 Sept, 1976 |
| Place of Birth | Rio de Janeiro |
| Height | 1.82 m |
| Nationality | Brazilian |
| Playing position | Striker |
KICK OFF
Ronaldo was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in September 1976 and is the third child of NelioNazario de Lima and Sonia dos Santos Barata. Growing up in a working class neighborhood, Ronaldo developed an early love for the game of football.
HIS STORY
Ronaldo’s odyssey started in the local club,Cruzeiro in 1993 before flying to join Dutch giants PSV at the age of 17. Ronaldo stayed there from 1994-96 becoming the Eredivisie top scorer in 1995. In 1996, he moved to Barcelona for arecord transfer fee of nearly $20 million.
Memorable moments there included 34 goals in 1997 including the one against SD Compostela. In 1997 he moved to Inter Milan where he lit up San Siro with his lightning strikes till 2002. Ronaldo became part of Real Madrid in 2002 and because of his goal-scoring abilities was the highest scorer in La Liga in 2004.In 2007 he moved to AC Milan and formed a striking trio with Kaka and Pato known as Ka-Pa-Ro.After playing for two seasons in Inter, Ronaldo came back to Brazil playing for Corinthians till his 2011 retirement.
His international debut came in versus. From early on there was no looking back as he was part of Brazil’s 1994 World Cup and 1996 Olympics campaign.It was in 1998 World Cup that he came on his own. Hailed as a great soccer player, Ronaldo wove his magic scoring 4 goals – a feat he doubled in the 2002 edition and remembered for his combination with Rivaldo and Ronaldinho.
Ronaldo scored 3 more goals in the 2006 edition, thus becoming the highest goalscorer. That he is a living legend was testified by the rousing reception he got from the Brazilian crowd during his farewell match against Romania in Sao Paulo in June 2011.
SCORE CARD
Ronaldo’s records themselves speak for the legend who played the ‘beautiful game’ so splendidly. A winner of 1994 and 2002 World Cups, besides Confederations Cup 1997 and Copa America in 1997 and 1999. He was the Football World Cup Golden Ball winner for 1998 for being the best player and won the Golden Boot winner in 2002 for being the top scorer. Ronaldo was awarded World Cup Football World Player of the year in 1996, 1997 and 2002. He was judged as the Serie A ‘Player of the Decade’ award for 1997-2007. He also made it into the ‘FIFA’ 100 list of best footballers.
EXTRA TIME
Ronaldo had a long term relationship with Brazilian actress Susana Werner before marrying Brazilian women’s team star MileneDomingues in 1999 with whom he had a son. In 2005 he married Brazilian model Daniela Cicarelli but divorced soon. At present, he is married to Maria Beatriz Antony and lives in Sao Paolo and his four children in his mansion. He has teamed up with Emerson Fittipaldi to co-own the Brazilian A1 Racing team.
OFF SIDE
Ronaldo created a furore for his underpar performance in 1998 World Cup finals versus France when he was said to have suffered a bout of convulsive fit. He recreated a minor ripple in Brazil when he joined Corinthians after declaring his support and love for Flamengo. In 2008, Ronaldo was involved in a night club escort scandal which created media buzz before settling the case.
TIE BREAKER
Ronaldo made football a more beautiful game with his subtle skills. He achieved iconic status in Milan, Barcelona, or Rio wherever he played. This man’s skills can be best judged by the Nike advert which showed one of his classic goals with the voiceover saying, “Imagine you asked God to be the best player in the world and he listened to you.”
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