Cristiano Ronaldo: 5 times the Portuguese proved he is the king of the Champions League

As Real Madrid crashed out of the Champions League last night, one couldn't help but think of Cristiano Ronaldo, and whether the match would've gone differently had he still been playing for Los Blancos.

This isn't an uncommon thought and it is one that has been shared and pondered by many fans and pundits as Real Madrid's season has gone from bad to worse, and despite only being in early March, their campaign is essentially over.

Real Madrid are out of the Champions League for the first time since 2015, what's even more alarming is that this is the first time since the 2010/11 season that Los Blancos failed to reach the semi-finals of the continental competition.

Things aren't any brighter for Ronaldo's new club Juventus as despite having the league all but wrapped up, they currently trail Atletico Madrid 2-0 in the Champions League Round of 16 tie, and the Italian giants will need a miracle to overturn that deficit.

However, with Ronaldo in their ranks, Juventus can dream about overturning the deficit as the Portuguese has time and again rescued his side in the Champions League.

#1 Scoring a Hat trick against Wolfsburg

Ronaldo scored three goals saving Real Madrid, who would eventually reclaim the Champions League later that year

After a shocking 2-0 away defeat to Wolfsburg in the 2015/16 season, it looked as though Real Madrid were likely to crash out of the Champions League.

However, Ronaldo had other ideas, and in the second leg, he would score an emphatic hat-trick against Wolfsburg which comprised of a close-range effort, a header, and a free kick.

Ronaldo is perhaps the best big-game player in the world and loves thriving under pressure, especially if it means him standing in the spotlight of the footballing world.

With Juventus desperately needing a huge win against Atletico Madrid, it is likely that all eyes will be fixed on Ronaldo to pull them through.

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#2 Scoring 17 goals in a single season

Ronaldo scored a record 17 goals in the 2013/14 Champions League

During the 2013/14 campaign, Real Madrid managed to break their 12-year wait to win the Champions League and finally complete 'La Decima'.

It was an incredible season for Los Blancos that will remain in the memory of those who watched it, especially with regards to Ronaldo.

Up until then, Lionel Messi's haul of 14 goals was the record total in a single Champions League season, and although Ronaldo had been close to that figure, he had never equalled or surpassed it.

All of this would change in 2014 when Ronaldo scored two goals past Bayern Munich in a semi-final away tie to take his total to 16 goals for that season.

However, Ronaldo wasn't finished as he topped off his perfect Champions League campaign by scoring in the final against Atletico Madrid deep into extra time to complete a 4-1 victory over Los Blancos' city rivals.

Ronaldo's goal-scoring ability is his greatest trait, and this achievement shows it. No other player has managed to cross the 15-goal mark in a single Champions League season apart from Ronaldo, who has done it on three occasions.

#3 Scoring 10 goals in the Knock out stages

Ronaldo scored 10 UCL knockout goals in a season.

Going into the knockout stages in the 2016/17 season, Ronaldo had been in questionable form, only managing 2 goals in the group stages.

Things didn't improve during Real Madrid's round of 16 tie against Napoli, and although Los Blancos advanced to the quarter-finals, Ronaldo drew blanks in both legs of the tie against the Italian team.

However, from the quarter-finals to the final, Ronaldo elevated his game and scored 10 goals in 5 games, averaging at 2 goals per game!

This saw him score 5 goals against Bayern Munich, 3 goals against Atletico Madrid, and 2 goals against Juventus.

Ronaldo also scored back-to-back hat-tricks against Bayern Munch and Atletico Madrid.

Scoring 10 goals in the knockout stages is an unprecedented feat, and it's a record that will be incredibly difficult to match or break.

What makes this feat even more incredible is that the latter stages are comparatively tougher as the biggest clubs face each other, and goals are usually hard to come by in these games.

The fact that Ronaldo scored 10 goals is impressive, but when one considers the level of opposition he faced in doing so, it makes his feat even greater.

#2 Becoming first player to score in three finals

Ronaldo scored in 2008, 2014, and 2017 finals

In the build-up to the 2016/17 Champions League final, it had been commented that both Ronaldo and Ramos could be the first players in Champions League history to score in three separate finals.

With Ronaldo having scored in the 2008 and 2014 final, and Ramos in the 2014 and 2016 final, both players were in line to set this record.

However, it was Ronaldo who ultimately did this by scoring 2 goals against Juventus in one of the best Champions League finals over the last decade, becoming the first, and currently the only player to score in three separate finals.

In addition, Ronaldo's tally of 4 goals in Champions League finals is also a record, with Gareth Bale's tally of 3 being the second-best.

Being able to rise to the occasion when your team needs you most is a trait that Ronaldo possesses, perhaps better than anyone, and this achievement of his proves that.

This shows that Ronaldo doesn't just thrive in the early stages of the tournament against comparatively weaker oppositions, but he arguably plays better when faced with the strongest opponents in the higher intensity matches.

#1 Reaching 100 goals with Real Madrid

Ronaldo scored over a goal a game for Real Madrid in the Champions League

In the Round of 16 of the 2017/18 Champions League, in a high-intensity match against Paris Saint Germain, Ronaldo scored his 100th goal for Real Madrid in the competition.

A remarkable feat in its own right, Ronaldo was the first player to achieve this, pipping Lionel Messi to this accolade, with the Argentine sitting on 97 goals at the time.

Although Messi has gone on to match this feat by Ronaldo, one must remember that the Argentine's record traces all the way back to 2004, whereas, Ronaldo was only at Real Madrid from 2009 til 2018.

Furthermore, Ronaldo went on to reach 105 goals for Real Madrid, achieving that feat in just 98 games, which equals to a peerless 1.07 goals per game.

When seeing that the breakdown of his Champions league goals stands at 50% in the group stages and 50% in the knockout stages, it's clear that Ronaldo hasn't just scored in the easier early stages of the competition but has been equally potent in the knockout stages as well.