00:02A few weeks ago, they nominated the best 11 ever for Ballon d'Or, so I was there, of course.
00:11You can never accuse Cristiano Ronaldo of hiding his light under a bushel.
00:18But he is the most prolific international goal scorer of all time.
00:25And the only man to score in five World Cups.
00:29He's been awarded five Ballon d'Or, named Player of the Year in England, Spain and Italy.
00:36And Captain Portugal to their first major title.
00:45He has been one of the defining individuals of the 21st century, and a figure of historical greatness in his
00:52homeland.
00:57In 2003 or 2004, when I was his last coach in Portugal, at 18, we already saw everything this player
01:05would be.
01:06It's impossible. He's a genius. He's part of the class of geniuses.
01:10It's hard to describe. Ronaldo is a genius.
01:13There are geniuses in painting, and he is a genius in football.
01:17These things happen.
01:20With adoration like that, the staggering fandom on social media, and the billions in the bank account, it's little wonder
01:28Ronaldo is not short of self-assurance.
01:30To speak about myself, individual, I don't need to speak, because the numbers they don't like.
01:36But Ronaldo had to work hard to earn this status, and it has worked harder than anybody in the game's
01:42history to maintain it.
01:45Without sacrifice, you do not achieve nothing.
01:48As you know, I started to play since I was in the top level, 18, and I was in the
01:53top of the game 15 years, 16.
01:57So, it's my dedication, my passion, my ambition, and working hard all the time.
02:01So, this is why I'm continuing to be in the top of the world in terms of performance, trophies, goals,
02:11records.
02:12So, I will continue.
02:14He is now passing on those life lessons to his eldest son, Cristiano Ronaldo Jr.,
02:19who was called up to the Portugal under-16 squad in 2025.
02:26Ronaldo's own childhood was far from straightforward.
02:28He grew up on the Portuguese island of Madeira, and then struggled with homesickness when his talents took him to
02:35Lisbon.
02:37He was a callow 18-year-old when Manchester United signed him in something of an impulse purchase by Sir
02:42Alex Ferguson,
02:44after the then-sporting winger tormented his side's defence in a pre-season friendly.
02:52Despite obvious gifts, Ronaldo was no overnight success in England's industrial north,
02:58taking time to convert his propensity for step-overs and buying fouls into goals and assists.
03:06But by his fourth season at Old Trafford, it had all come together,
03:11and he went on to play in beast mode for most of the following 20 years,
03:16perfecting the art of dribbling, long-range shooting, free kicks,
03:20and most spectacularly of all, leaping for headers.
03:27The peak years were spent at Real Madrid, where he moved for €94 million in the summer of 2009.
03:3580,000 fans packed into the Bernabeu to greet him,
03:38and they spent the next decade enraptured by their hero.
03:43In nine staggering seasons in Spain, Ronaldo scored a scarcely believable 450 goals
03:51in just 438 appearances,
03:54becoming the storied club's all-time leading scorer.
04:00He won the Champions League on four occasions in Madrid,
04:04to go with a one he had secured previously with United.
04:08Tell me who's the best player in the world.
04:09Me!
04:14In any other era, he would have scooped up every individual award for years on end.
04:18But this wasn't any era, so he had to settle for only five Ballons d'Or.
04:26He's won this award five times, which is an unbelievable achievement.
04:31I thought it was very good to win one award,
04:34but to win it five times just goes to prove that he's one of the best players
04:38that have ever walked on this planet.
04:40The reason Ronaldo's statistical feats haven't always translated into individual honours
04:45is, of course, the presence of Lionel Messi.
04:50But then, would Ronaldo have reached and maintained such great heights
04:54without the motivation to prove he was the best, week in, week out,
04:58with such a talented rival continually upping the stakes?
05:04Well, after the age most mortal footballers are considering hanging up their boots,
05:10Ronaldo continues to find the back of the net.
05:15Approaching 40, he was Portugal's leading scorer in the 2024-25 Nations League group phase,
05:22while at the same time averaging a goal per game for Al Nasser in the Saudi Pro League.
05:28All the while demonstrating the same desperation to succeed as ever,
05:34never shy in thumping the pitch in frustration or crying in despair.
05:41Approaching 41, he continued to find the back of the net in UEFA qualifying Group F,
05:47driving his side-on to another major tournament,
05:50where he would leave the owner of a staggering array of records.
05:56For all the goals, endorsements and celebrity, this is the crucial through-line in Ronaldo's career.
06:05From breaking into Sporting's gym to do extra training as a skinny teenager,
06:09to exposing his emotions to the world as a billionaire in a retirement league,
06:14Ronaldo's commitment to maximising every ounce of his potential has never wavered.
06:21And commonly healthy and motivated, it may never diminish.
06:27SHOTAWAYS
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