Just a quick post to pay tribute to Brazilian footballer Ronaldo who retired from football yesterday afternoon following a series of injuries prevented him from 'being able to perform to the best of his abilities.'
It's a bit of a cliche to say this, but the word 'great' is thrown around too often. I would, however, put Ronaldo into that category having pretty much followed his career from beginning to end. As a 17 year-old the forward moved from Corinthians to PSV Eindhoven before going on to succeed with Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and AC Milan.
He finished his career back in his homeland and will be widely remembered for his terrific goalscoring record at basically ever level he has played at.
To compile a list of the 'best' players in history would be an extremely difficult task, but I think that along with Zidane, Ronaldo should be considered as the finest player in his generation. I heard someone say yesterday, "Imagine how good he would have been if he actually tried!" A strange comment I found some some one who scored better than a goal every two games playing in some of the world's elite teams.
It's unfortunate that during his earliest moments in the spotlight, the France '98 World Cup Final, a huge cloud of doubt was placed over his future following a convulsive fit which saw him fail to perform and help Brazil retain the trophy. Injuries a season later almost saw Ronaldo leave the game permanently, but like any good player, he came back when people had written him off scoring two goals in the World Cup Final en-route to winning the Golden Boot.
The only major trophy missing from his resume is the Champions League and the fact that he was unable to appear in a final is a huge surprise having played for a quartet of teams who have all won the competition.
That aside, Ronaldo's retirement from the game should be mourned as greatly as that of Zidane, Maldini or Bergkamp. Scoring fifteen goals in World Cup Finals, a feat he achieved in 2006 pretty much quietens the doubters about his ability or physique. I can remember a game between Real Madrid and Manchester United when the Brazilian had three chances, scored a hat trick and earned a standing ovation from the Old Trafford crowd. That year he single handedly kept Madrid in the hunt for European and domestic glory, and despite the fact that English fans never saw him on their shores, we should appreciate the talents of Il Fenomemo (The Phenomenon).
Check out the skills of the now retired 'Legend' of Brazilian Football..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2NHqSXftzU
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