Cristiano Ronaldo's 10 best goals of the decade

#4 vs. Atletico Madrid, April 2012

Ronaldo unleashed an unstoppable free kick past Atletico Madrid

Another Real Madrid game in 2011-12, another Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick. This time the treble came against Real’s neighbours Atletico Madrid, as Los Blancos went into the Estadio Vicente Calderon and came away with an impressive 1-4 victory. On this occasion, it was the Portuguese forward’s first goal that was the most outstanding one.

Coming into the match, Ronaldo had not scored from a free-kick in more than 40 attempts during the season, but all that was about to change on 25 minutes. Awarded the kick some 36 yards out, ‘CR7’ stood over the ball in his trademark pose before hitting it with his famed ‘knuckleball’ shot, sending a strangely hard, flat shot whizzing past the wall and into the net past a frozen Thibaut Courtois.

The curve that the Portuguese put on the ball made this a simply unstoppable shot, reminiscent of his great free kick for Manchester United against Portsmouth in 2008. The goal was his 39th of 2011-12 – and it came as no surprise to see him add his 40th and 41st later in the match.

About the author

Scott is a veteran MMA writer with over two decades of experience, including his ongoing tenure in Sportskeeda, which began seven years ago. He has written over 3000 pieces for the organization, while also covering football. Before joining Sportskeeda, Scott wrote articles for websites like The Oratory and Inside Pulse MMA.

Scott has a degree in history, which drives his research skills and helps him compile accurate information. His long stint in the field helps Scott provide a clear take on important topics, such as the criticism of promotions regarding fighter pay. While he feels fighters deserve a bigger revenue share, he doesn’t want MMA to suffer with purse-split issues.

Scott’s work has been previously reshared by the former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman. He uses credible sources, such as the UFC’s official website, during the writing process.

His dedication to MMA writing won him the Feature Writer of the Month award for Sportskeeda in November 2021.

Outside of work, Scott likes to go to the gym, walk his dog, and travel.

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Edited by Vishal Subramanian