Manchester United’s Ronaldo tops Google ‘I hate’ searches
It may not be the finest accolade Cristiano Ronaldo ever receives, but the light-loafered midfielder has this week been revealed as one of the most searched for people in the UK this year on Google… in the ‘I hate’ category.
Don't you just hate him?The greasy haired, fleet-footed, dive-happy, lady-loving, torso-tastic (that’s enough – Ed) Man U magician may be a god amongst the Old Trafford faithful, but he’s clearly reviled by every single other human being that happens to live in the UK.
Google revealed this startling social maxim on Monday, when it published its most popular searches of 2007, or in Ronaldo’s case most unpopular.
The phrase ‘I hate Ronaldo’ took the honours in its field, beating the ever reliable ‘I hate men’ into second place and ‘I hate school’ into third.
In other anthropological gems uncovered by the Google-meisters, we also want ‘pants’ more than anything else (including world peace, zero pollution and ‘a successful Capital of Culture year for Liverpool, please God’), whereas ‘I love techno’ came out a bizarre second in the ‘I love’ searches.
‘I love How-Do’ supposedly came in a respectable 12th in that particular search, but then that could be because we apparently share the name with an American flesh site.
Not that that was Nick’s idea to boost visitor numbers or anything, oh no, not at all…
MANCHESTER, Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice and Manchester United beat Fulham 2-0 on Monday to reclaim second place in the English Premier League.
Ronaldo, who finished second to AC Milan's Brazilian midfielder Kaka for European Golden Ball award on Sunday, scored in the 10th and 58th minutes at Old Trafford to increase his season total to 13 goals in 11 games. It also gave him six in his last four appearances against Fulham.
United's 10th victory of the season gave it 33 points from 15 matches, moving it back in front of Chelsea and Liverpool -- both of which won over the weekend -- and three points behind Arsenal.
Arsenal, which is unbeaten with 11 wins and three draws, could move six points ahead with a victory at Newcastle on Wednesday in a rescheduled match.
Monday's loss left 14th-placed Fulham two points above the relegation zone.
Wayne Rooney returned after missing three matches for United -- as well as two England -- with an ankle injury and partnered Carlos Tevez in attack.
United took only 10 minutes to go ahead when Fulham midfielder Steven Davis, attempting to a clear a corner, headed it to Nemanja Vidic who set up an unmarked Ronaldo for a 12-meter volley.
As the home side maintained the early possession, Fulham goalkeeper Antti Niemi twice was forced into dramatic saves to thwart Tevez.
Nieme's United counterpart, Edwin van der Sar, likewise made a diving save against his former club to deny Danny Murphy, and Shefki Kuqi headed wide four minutes before halftime.
Ronaldo added the second in the 58th minute when he got ahead of Fulham defender Aaron Hughes to meet a cross from John O'Shea and converted with a downward header.
Fulham manager Lawrie Sanchez responded by inserting former United striker David Healy for Clint Dempsey to field two strikers.
Ronaldo appeared certain to score a third with 12 minutes remaining when he appeared to get past Niemi. But he went down under the goalkeeper's challenge only to be shown the yellow card for a dive.
FIFA have named Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, Brazil's Kaka and Argentina's Lionel Messi as the three finalists for the 2007 world soccer player of the year award.
The world body said the trio were confirmed after a poll of coaches and captains of national teams around the world selected them from a 30-strong shortlist.
The winner, who will succeed Fabio Cannavaro of Italy and Real Madrid from last year's competition, will be announced at the FIFA World Player Gala in Zurich on Dec 17.
If Kaka gets the nod it is likely to mean a double triumph, with the Brazilian set to be named winner of the Ballon d'Or on Sunday.
Kaka was the inspiration behind AC Milan's Champions League success last season, finishing top scorer in the competition with 10 goals.
The 25-year-old opted to sit out the Copa America but he was hardly missed, as Brazil went on to take the trophy with a 3-0 victory over Argentina in the final.
Messi was in the Argentina side that lost that match.
The Barcelona forward, still only 20, missed out on the Spanish title last season - won by Real Madrid. Among the highlights of his year was the hat-trick he scored in a 3-3 draw with Real in the Primera Liga.
Ronaldo, 22, led Manchester United to the Premier League title last season, scoring 17 league goals.
He also helped United reach the semifinals of the Champions League, where they lost to Milan.
Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo is on a three-man shortlist for Fifa's world player of the year award. The 22-year-old Portugal winger is up against AC Milan's Brazilian star Kaka, who is the favourite, and Argentine Lionel Messi, who plays for Barcelona.
It is the first time any of the trio have been shortlisted for the award, which was won by Italy defender Fabio Cannavaro in 2006.
The award will be made at Fifa's world player gala in Zurich on 17 December.
If Ronaldo wins he will be the first player from an English club to claim the award.
The award is voted for by the managers and captains of the national teams of Fifa's member countries.
well, i do know many people think the fifa awards are a joke, but i can't help being pleased to know that cristiano is on the three-man shortlist Smiley i guess kaka is going to land this one too, so i'm not keeping my hopes up. 2nd place would be decent i guess.
SIR ALEX FERGUSON believes Cristiano Ronaldo will be worthy of the honour of becoming Manchester United’s first European Footballer of the Year for nearly 40 years.
Ronaldo is joint favourite with AC Milan’s Brazilian Kaka for the Ballon D’Or which will be announced this weekend ahead of the awards ceremony in Paris tomorrow evening. United are ready to hire a private jet to fly him out to the French capital and back tomorrow in order to keep him fresh for Monday’s Premier League clash against Fulham.
Ferguson believes Ronaldo’s achievements for United and Portugal deserve to see him follow in the footsteps of the club’s previous winners of the prestigious prize, the ‘holy trinity’ of Denis Law (1964), Bobby Charlton (1966) and George Best (1968). The United boss said: “Cristiano is definitely one of the best players in the world, there is no question of that, and he has had a fantastic year at club and international level. He must have some chance of winning and it would be tremendous for the boy.
“He puts in so much practice in his drive to be at the top of his profession. He doesn’t really need any endorsements from me. I have said time and again that he is a marvellous player and he gets all the endorsements he needs with his performances. “His improvement can be measured in two ways. His decision-making is very good now as opposed to when he was a young kid. And his goalscoring record has improved each year, which is a terrific sign.
“He influences games not only for us but for Portugal. He has a phenomenal goalscoring record for his country – it is almost one in every two games, which is an amazing record for a young player. He has already got 11 goals for us this season and we’ve only just reached December. That augurs well that he can go on and beat last season’s tally of 23.”
United director Charlton said Ferguson’s side would not be Premier League champions without Ronaldo. “Ronaldo’s influence in United winning the title was decisive,” said Charlton. “He changed the course of matches all by himself.” The Golden Ball, organised by French magazine France Football, is open for the first time to any player on earth, not only in Europe.
Charlton said: “It was in 2007 that he really imposed himself at the front of the stage and became this source of inspiration not just in England or Portugal but elsewhere.
He has this something that distinguishes a Golden Ball winner from simply a super player. I will be accused of nepotism, of course, because he is one of our players.
“But the kid you see kicking a ball in the street dreams he is Cristiano Ronaldo and not only in Manchester. He wants to dribble, shoot and score like him.” Ronaldo is also on a shortlist of three with Kaka and Barcelona’s Lionel Messi for FIFA’s world player of the year award.
And he will be back in tandem in United’s attack with Wayne Rooney, who will return from an ankle injury against Fulham on Monday. Gary Neville is set to make his first-team comeback after an eight-month injury lay-off in the Champions League group game against Roma on December 12.
That match was rendered meaningless by United’s 2-1 Champions League victory over Sporting Lisbon on Wednesday, which Fulham manager Lawrie Sanchez believes has given him a clue to a successful raid on Old Trafford.
Sanchez is convinced the only way Fulham can get anything from the visit is to launch an all-out attack from the off. “If you sit back against them you will get what you deserve so you have to go and make a game of it,” said Sanchez. “Sporting showed you can get at them and I will set my team up to have a go.”
CRISTIANO RONALDO admits he is honoured to be mentioned in the same breath as Old Trafford legend Eric Cantona.
The comparisons flowed again as the Portuguese star chose the 15th anniversary of Cantona’s arrival at Manchester United to score his latest wonder goal — the stoppage-time winner against Sporting Lisbon.
The hottest topic among United fans is how Ronaldo is able to turn a game in an instant with a flash of genius, just as ‘Eric the King’ did in his mid-1990s heyday.
Ronaldo, 22, is well aware of Cantona’s Old Trafford legacy — and is doing his best to live up to it. His sensational free-kick in the 2-1 win over his former Sporting team-mates was his 11th goal of the season and his ninth in the last eight games.
And after scoring 23 times in United’s Premiership-winning campaign last season, his value to Alex Ferguson’s team is clear to see.
Ronaldo said: “It’s great to be compared with a player of Cantona’s reputation because he was so important for United.
“Cantona was a great player, a fantastic player. I’ve seen tapes of him playing for United in the past and I enjoy watching him a lot because he was such a fantastic footballer.
“I met him when we were doing an advert for Nike called ‘The Secret Tournament’ when there were a lot of players in a cage with Eric as the ringmaster. And we’ve done other adverts together since then.
"He’s a great guy and I enjoyed meeting him. I know what he meant to United and what he helped achieve in his time at the club.
Different style
“I’m a big fan of Cantona, not just because of what he achieved as a player, but because of the person he is.
“He always speaks well about the United team and the players. It is an honour to be talked about alongside him.
“But every player is different. Cantona had a different style to me, I have a different style to him. But it’s great to be compared with him. Things like that give me extra motivation to work hard and become a better player.”
Ronaldo already works hard enough on every aspect of his game, including free-kicks like the one which guaranteed United top spot in Group F, regardless of the result of their final game away to Roma on December 12.
That will allow Ferguson the luxury of resting a host of key players ahead of the Premier League clash with Liverpool four days later.
Ronaldo confessed that, in training, he regularly strikes the ball as cleanly as he did against Sporting — but rarely manages it in big matches.
So that goal felt even more special, even though it sunk his Portuguese pals.
He added: “It was a great free-kick, and it was amazing to score like that so late in he game. I was very happy because I work so hard on free-kicks in training.
"I work hard to become a good player and I’ve improved a lot. I want to be a better player every season and I think I’m doing that at the moment. But I will never stop trying to improve even more.”
United’s stand-in keeper Tomasz Kuszczak joined the Ronaldo fan club after his stunning winner.
The Polish stopper, 25, was caught napping when the Portuguese side opened the scoring through Abel’s swerving shot from way out on the touchline.
Kuszczak, who has had few chances to impress as Edwin Van der Sar’s deputy, said: “I felt really good to be playing again — and then the mistake happened.
“That is the sort of thing that happens in football. But the important thing was that we still won the game.
“I have to thank Ronaldo for that. He is a special player who can do special things for the team. Everyone knows what a great player he is and he showed it again.
“I felt a lot better when he scored, so after the game I ran to congratulate him. I was very happy for him and even more happy for me.
“He won the game in the final minutes and that is what everyone remembers — not my mistake so much.
“I still have a 100 per cent record in the Champions League after four games and I am proud of that. It’s been a great experience for me but, of course, I want to play many more games.
“It was my first mistake at Manchester United and I hope it’s the last one. Sometimes things happen which you don’t expect but that’s football.”
source: thesun.co.uk
it means hes doing well when hes compared to Cantona, that is like the pinnacle of every United player i imagine, to be compared to Cantona, as he was voted our best ever player years ago.
hes right though, every player is diffrent, Cantona played as a support striker, where as Cristiano plays as a winger, of course they are similair in some ways in terms of skill and and just the mystic surrounding them, aswell as the confidence/arrogance, Cris probably has more pace then Cantona did.
Cristiano can build his own legacy and legend, like helping us win the Champion's League, something Cantona has never won. Grin it's like the one-trophy he needs to be in-mortal and win every trophy at club level.
Fifteen years to the day after Eric Cantona walked into Old Trafford with the swagger that helped transform Manchester United from nearly men to English football's dominant force, Cristiano Ronaldo paid homage to the Frenchman with a magic moment of his own to confirm top spot in Group F with a stunning injury-time free-kick against the club that set him on the road to stardom.
All that was missing was the upturned collar, but Ronaldo's celebration, a knowing look and a shrug of the shoulders, was pure Cantona.
While Cantona's powers ultimately proved impotent in the Champions League, however, Ronaldo's fifth goal in five European games this season underlined the belief that his talents will not be found wanting as United attempt to add a third European Cup to their honours list.
United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said: "It was a truly excellent goal, a marvellous strike, but he has done it many times before. Ronaldo works very hard for moments like that. He was only 18 when he came to us from Sporting and that was a disadvantage in Europe, but he is maturing and does what we expect him to do now. He certainly has the ability to score goals, though, and he can do even better than last season."
With two minutes of stoppage time played, Ronaldo had no margin for error when he placed the ball for a direct free-kick 30 yards out after a foul on Anderson.
Anything but a goal would have left United needing to avoid defeat against Roma in the Stadio Olimpico on Dec 12 to be certain of top spot and a place among the seeded teams in the last 16, yet the pressure to deliver was nothing to the Portuguese forward and he secured the victory with a swerving strike that will make the trip to Rome nothing more than an exercise in squad rotation.
Ronaldo said: "It was a fabulous goal. I did not celebrate when I scored against Sporting in Lisbon, but this goal was different and I am very happy because it is always important to win and top the group."
Despite Ferguson's pre-match assertion that his team would keep their foot firmly on the pedal in order to claim the victory that would clinch the group, United's Champions League history is littered with insipid performances once qualification to the knock-out stages has been secured, and their first-half display was on a par with previous low points against Fenerbahce and Maccabi Haifa. United were surprisingly beaten on both those occasions, conceding top spot in the group when losing to Fenerbahce in 2004, so Ferguson's determination to claim three points against Sporting was borne out of painful experience.
Playing for the top position and fighting for Champions League survival are two hugely different objectives, however, and the urgency that United lacked was present in every tackle, shot and pass made by Paulo Bento's players.
An already-qualified Croatia may have played like men possessed against England at Wembley last week, but United displayed no such desire in the early stages.
Joao Moutinho sent a 25-yard effort narrowly wide of Tomasz Kuszczak's right-hand post as Sporting went close with 12 minutes on the clock and, after Louis Saha had wasted a clear chance following a Ronaldo flick seven minutes later, Bento's team took the lead with a goal that would have left United's Polish goalkeeper suffering that Scott Carson feeling.
Miguel Veloso's pass to Abel on the right flank posed no obvious threat to United, but Abel spotted a sizeable gap between Kuszczak and his near post and the midfielder scored with a bewitching effort from a demanding angle with the outside of his right foot.
Trailing at half-time and with Roma already 3-0 ahead against Dynamo Kiev in Ukraine, United had to raise their game after the break if they were to take the sting out of the trip to Rome and the introduction of Carlos Tevez and Ryan Giggs injected purpose into United's play.
But with Saha continuing to perform like a player shorn of fitness and confidence, Ferguson's team lacked an obvious cutting edge.
The energy of Tevez and Ronaldo posed Sporting problems, but it was not until Tevez diverted Ronaldo's miscued shot into the net after 61 minutes that United seriously threatened the Sporting goal.
At 1-1, top place in the group was still not secured and Ronaldo, Owen Hargreaves and Michael Carrick all saw chances go begging before Ronaldo delivered his killer blow.
With the group safely negotiated, Ferguson admitted that he will not waste the luxury of being able to rest key men in Rome next month.
He said: "We have a game at Liverpool four days after Rome, so I will certainly use all of my squad against Roma. One or two players won't even travel, but we will still try to win the game."
Cristiano Ronaldo's late strike gave Manchester United victory against Sporting Lisbon to ensure they finish top of their Champions League group.
Ronaldo fired in a superb injury-time free-kick to sink battling Sporting and take the pressure off United for their final group game away to AS Roma.
Abel beat Tomasz Kuszczak at his near post to put Sporting ahead early on.
But substitute Carlos Tevez levelled from close range on the hour to set up Ronaldo's grandstand finish.
United will now get a more favourable draw in the last 16 knockout stages after topping Group F.
Ronaldo was restored to their starting line-up after the defeat at Bolton - but he had little impact on a low-key first 45 minutes.
He did create one chance for Louis Saha with a brilliant flick after 18 minutes, but the striker pulled his shot wide.
Sporting took the lead in bizarre circumstances three minutes later when Abel's speculative shot from near the touchline caught out Kuszczak and flew in at his near post.
They could have added a second almost instantly, but Liedson's finish was ruled out for offside - a marginal decision at best.
As United struggled to maintain any attacking rhythm, Sporting were shooting on sight and Anderson Polga shocked Kuszczak with a snap-shot that the keeper held at the second attempt.
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson made a double substitution at half-time, sending on Tevez and Ryan Giggs for Nani and Darren Fletcher.
Giggs almost created an equaliser for United after 58 minutes when Nemanja Vidic met his corner but headed just wide.
United did not have long to wait to restore equality, levelling on the hour when Ronaldo's shot was deflected in off a combination of Tevez and Sporting defender Marian Had.
Tevez then set up Ronaldo for a fierce angled drive, but his effort was well blocked by Sporting keeper Rui Patricio.
Owen Hargreaves was introduced with 12 minutes left, and he almost scored with only his second touch, forcing another fine save out of the impressive Patricio from Anderson's pass.
But with time running out and United looking like they might need something from their trip to Roma to win their group, Ronaldo fired in a brilliant swerving free-kick to seal the win.
Man Utd: Kuszczak, O'Shea, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Ronaldo, Carrick, Anderson, Fletcher (Tevez 46), Nani (Giggs 46), Saha (Hargreaves 79). Subs Not Used: Van der Sar, Brown, Pique, Simpson.
Footballer Cristiano Ronaldo says all he wants is a quiet life and enough cash to buy a few candles.
The Man United star - who reportedly invited 5 escort girls to a bash at his £3 million home earlier this month - says he would much rather have a quiet evening in than go on a boozy night out.
'Many people have images of footballers as people who like to go out all the time, spend their money lavishly and like to date many women,' he tells Hello!
'But I don't drink alcohol, I hate smoking and I'm not a big spender. I live in a rural part of Cheshire, where squirrels, birds and cows are my closest neighbours.'
Cristiano, 22, isn't the least bit interested in wild parties around the Jacuzzi.
'Much of time is spent at home, with my friends and family,' he insists. 'I enjoy to be peaceful and often sit by candlelight to relax. Tranquillity is important to me.'
Sir Alex had no choice but to leave out Cristiano Ronaldo and Nemanja Vidic for the Reds' trip to Bolton on Saturday.
The pair now face a race against time to be fit for Tuesday’s Champions League clash with Sporting Lisbon.
Fans were puzzled Portuguese winger Ronaldo was nowhere to be seen at the Reebok Stadium, whle Nemanja Vidic also missed the match through injury.
“Ronaldo had a little strain on the inside of his thigh and Nemanja [Vidic] missed Serbia's game on Wednesday while on international duty,” United boss Sir Alex Ferguson told MUTV. “We’ll see what they are like for Tuesday but they were not fit for Saturday.”
Even without Ronaldo, Vidic and other stars like Wayne Rooney and Paul Scholes, Sir Alex believed United still had a good enough squad to beat Bolton.
“I think we had enough players to win that game, there's no question about that,” he said. “But Bolton did make a lot of chances and they worked really hard for their victory. You cannot deny them that.
“We didn't make enough chances to say we deserved to win the game. If we had scored we would probably have won it but we needed to score.”
While obviously disappointed with the result, Ferguson urged his players to bounce back immediately.
“We have to react to losing the game. It’s in the history and nature of our club and we have the right set of players to do that.”
i hope hes back soon! no wonder he wasn't at the game, with a thigh strain you have to rest.
i don't think it's bad though as didn't he go out after the Portugal game where hes ment to have got it from? he should be fit for Tuesday or deffo next weekend.
A trio of Portuguese stars have declared that the Selecção das Quinas are in with a great chance of winning Euro 2008 after securing qualification last night...
Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo (pictured) has named Portugal as one of the favourites for the Euro 2008 crown.
The 2004 hosts secured qualification for the Austria-Switzerland tournament last night after drawing 0-0 at home to Finland, with the attacking midfielder in mixed moods after the game.
He told PortuGOAL.net, "All our players should have ambition to lift trophies. I think we can win the European Championships. We have great players, a great structure and we have to think positive. We’re going to be at our best in the finals."
However, he seemed to indicate that the pressure of the fanbase was beginning to play a major role in the dynamics of the team, who failed to score in Porto.
"This team is at the level we have accustomed the public to over recent years," he began.
"We have achieved a lot of great things. Now, whenever things go wrong people start criticising straight away, but we have to get used to that. But I think in one way this is positive."
Atletico Madrid midfielder Maniche added, "We had some tough times this campaign but we’ve managed to get through it.
"Nowadays, there are no easy games. We did not have one single simple game in this qualification. But today we played well, helped each other and the only thing lacking was a goal.
"Some young players are coming into the team that have a lot of quality. They’ve shown it at club level and now they are showing it for the national team."
Real Madrid defender Pepe then concluded, "I’m delighted. I’m very happy with the way I was received by the fans and would like to thank the support of the crowd.
"It was a game in which we suffered a little, but that makes it all the more satisfying [to qualify]. But we deserved to win this match.
"This squad is fantastic and we deserve congratulations.
"Can we be champions? I believe so; we have very good players who respected all around Europe."
Portugal lost out in the 2004 final against Greece.
I agree, they are certainly one of the favourites, the finals in Euro 2004 and semi finalist in 2006, they have really improved over the years and are now one of the big football nations who are one of the favourites for every tournament.
I agree about fans/media/press ect expectations, when you lift expecations so high it's hard to make people happy because of the expectaincy, but in a way that's good because people expect alot (maybe too much) which is nice.
PORTO, Portugal - Portugal held Finland to a 0-0 draw Wednesday, securing a place in next year's European Championships.
The 2004 finalists threatened throughout but couldn't beat goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen, who denied Cristiano Ronaldo and Ricardo Quaresma on a number of chances.
Portugal finished Group A with 27 points, while Finland - which needed a win to have any chance of reaching its first European finals - had 24.
Luiz Felipe Scolari returned to the bench after completing a two-month touchline ban imposed by UEFA for scuffling with defender Ivica Dragutinovic at the end of Portugal's 1-1 draw with Serbia in September.
With midfield playmaker Deco of FC Barcelona and Werder Bremen's Hugo Almeida among six players missing to injury, the weight of the attack fell on the shoulders of Ronaldo and Quaresma.
Scolari also handed Pepe his first start after the Real Madrid defender recovered from injury.
Ronaldo responded in the 11th, the Manchester United forward's free kick stopped by Jaaskelainen.
Daniel Sjolund had Finland's best chance of the first half on the counterattack in the very next minute, but Ricardo saved.
Quaresma wasn't as sharp, however, shooting wide in the 26th then missing a chance up close in the 38th.
Quaresma hit the post in the 60th and missed again in the 81st before coming off for Nani three minutes later.
Both goalkeepers were sharp over the final period, Ricardo denying substitute Ariza Makukula in the 88th and Jaaskelainen stopping Nani two minutes into injury time as the hosts pressed.
Lineups:
Portugal: Ricardo, Jose Bosingwa, Pepe, Fernando Meira, Bruno Alves, Marco Caneira, Miguel Veloso, Maniche (Raul Meireles, 73), Ricardo Quaresma (Nani, 84), Nuno Gomes (Ariza Makukula, 77), Cristiano Ronaldo.
Finland: Jussi Jaaskelainen, Sami Hyypia, Toni Kallio, Petri Pasanen, Hannu Tihinen, Markus Heikkinen, Joonas Kolkka (Jonatan Johansson, 75), Jari Litmanen (Mika Vayraminen, 67), Daniel Sjolund, Teemu Tainio (Alexei Eremenko Jr., 69), Mikael Forssell.
CRISTIANO Ronaldo has received a huge boost in his bid to be named as World Footballer of the Year - the backing of one of his main rivals for the award, Kaka.
The United ace is one of five Reds among the 50 nominees for the Ballon d'Or, the most prestigious prize an individual footballer can win, and which will be announced on December 2.
And he is among the favourites after last year inspiring United to the Premier League title and to the semi-finals of the Champions League, and guiding Portugal to the World Cup semi-finals.
The award, which used to be known as European Footballer of the Year until its scope was widened last year, depends on a poll of 96 football writers worldwide.
But AC Milan's Brazilian superstar Kaka has already said that if he had a vote, it would go to his rival, saying: "I would vote for Cristiano as the best in the world.
"It is not just for his quality, but also as he has been able to do so well with Portugal. Lionel Messi is also a great player, but he has not won any titles this year."
Award
The award, presented by the magazine France Football, originated 51 years ago when Stanley Matthews first won it.
Since then, only three United players have lifted it, with George Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton all winning it in the 1960s - Best was the last to win it after helping the Reds to glory in the 1968 European Cup final.
The only United players to have come close in the past 38 years were Eric Cantona, who finished third in the 1993 poll, and David Beckham, who came second in 1999.
Illustrious names to have won the title include Johann Cruyff, Marco van Basten and Michel Platini, the only three men to have won it three times, as well as Ronaldinho, Zinedine Zidane, Ruud Gullit, Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller, Eusebio and Alfredo di Stefano.
But Ronaldo is expected to fight it out with Kaka and Barcelona's Argentinian ace Lionel Messi for this year's award, which for the first time gives the vote to 43 journalists from outside Europe.
Among Ronaldo's rivals are four United team-mates, with Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes and Carlos Tevez all nominated - only Barcelona, who have seven nominees, have more.
Cristiano Ronaldo has hit back at the Portuguese public after they heckled the team’s 1-0 home win over Armenia.
Hugo Almeida spared Portugal’s blushes with the only goal of a poor contest, leaving Luis Felipe Scolari’s men needing just one point to qualify for Euro 2008.
The performance did not sit well with the home fans, who displayed their frustration at the final whistle – but Ronaldo insists results are the only thing on his mind.
"For me it is a pain to receive critics in Portugal when playing for the national team," he said.
"I do not understand the attitude of the fans in Leiria but that is the way it is between the supporters in my country.
“We are not machines and it is not always possible to win the matches with style on the field.
“But I prefer to play a bad match and win than the opposite.
“Now we need a point against Finland but the team are not thinking of the draw.
“It is impossible to play safe so our only objective is the three points."
i agree with him, supporters need to understand players are not machines, they can't play with style all the time, winning is the most important thing, at the end of the day what would supporters want, to play with style and lose or with no style and win? i'd much rather win because i know the style will come eventually.
