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Cristiano Ronaldo is arguably one of the greatest players of all time. Nearly 37, he is far from slowing down anytime soon.
Every year, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner registers new milestones, and achieves success with club and country, In that regard, the year 2021 was no exception for the Portugal captain.
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While he won two trophies in the calendar year, 2021 was much more about personal glory for the Portuguese superstar. The player is set to wrap up proceedings for the year with a Premier League home game against Burnley. On that note, here's a look at the top five moments in 2021 for Ronaldo.
#5 Cristiano Ronaldo won his first Capocannoniere award
Cristiano Ronaldo finished as the top scorer in all three seasons with Juventus. He had an incredible goalscoring record with the Bianconeri, finding the back of the net 101 times in 135 outings.
It wasn't until his final season with the club that he finished as the top scorer in Serie A. He scored 29 goals in the 2020-21 campaign, finishing third in the European Golden Boot rankings.
He had scored 31 league goals the previous season. However, he was beaten to the award by Ciro Immobile, who scored a record-equalling 36 goals for Lazio. Nonetheless, with his first Capocannoniere award, Ronaldo become the first player to win the top scorer's award in the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A.
#4 Ronaldo became the all-time top goalscorer in the European Championships
Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the greatest goalscorers of all time. He is a dangerous player in and around the box because he can score off either foot, and is a great header of the ball as well.
He has enjoyed a great goalscoring run for Portugal in recent years. Ronaldo has reached double digits in international goals in four of the last six calendar years. He finished as the top scorer at EURO 2020 alongside Patrik Schick, bagging five goals and an assist to win the Golden Boot.
With a goal in the 87th minute against Hungary in Portugal's group game at EURO 2020, Ronaldo surpassed Michel Platini (9) to become the all-time top scorer in the competition. He would go on to score four more goals in the tournament even as the holders were eliminated by Belgium in the Round of 16.
#3 Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United
Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United has been highly successful. His performances in the famed red shirt have made it seem as if he never left the club.
He re-joined the Red Devils after a fairly successful spell at Juventus. He became an instant hit on social media when Manchester United announced his return; the announcement on Twitter became the most liked tweet for a sports team.
Ronaldo was awarded the No.7 jersey on his return to Old Trafford. He has done justice to the iconic shirt, scoring 13 goals across \competitions, including a series of match-winning goals in the Champions League.
The player was close to signing up for United's arch-rivals Manchester City. However, a few of Ronaldo's former teammates and even Sir Alex Ferguson reportedly persuaded him to sign for United instead.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo became the most prolific scorer in men's international football
Cristiano Ronaldo is no stranger to breaking goalscoring records. As things stand, he is the leading goalscorer in Real Madrid's history (450) and also the top scorer (140) in the UEFA Champions League.
So, it was only a matter of time before the prolific forward would overtake Ali Daei's long-standing record of 109 international goals. The Iran striker was the only player with over a century of goals for a national team for 15 years before Ronaldo joined him last year.
Ronaldo's record-breaking goal came during Portugal's FIFA World Cup qualifying game against Ireland in September. The 36-year-old scored the Selecao's both goals in a comeback win. He added a further four goals during the year to end 2021 with 115 international goals.
#1 Ronaldo scored his 800th goal for club and country
Cristiano Ronaldo registered himself in the history books for the umpteenth time when he bagged a brace in Manchester United's 3-2 Premier League win over Arsenal on 3rd December.
With the two goals, he became the leading goalscorer in the 21st century, and is also the only player to breach the 800-goal mark this century. Well, he is officially the only player to reach the landmark figure in football history but some figures suggest the likes of Josef Bican and Pele have scored more.
Ronaldo is showing no signs of slowing down. As things stand, he will end the calendar year with 46 goals for club and country, which is more than his long-time rival Lionel Messi.
