How did a poor boy from Madeira become one of the best in World Football?
We are a story. A sum of all that's happened to us and how we react to them. Cristiano Ronaldo, what's his story?
Born 5th of February in 1985 and named Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro. His mother was a Cook and his father a Gardener who was an alcoholic. His mother revealed she contemplated aborting him while pregnant due to poverty but the doctor refused the procedure, well, the boy tasted poverty sharing a room with all three of his siblings.
Andorinha was where his football journey began, playing there between 1992 and 1995 then he went to Nacional where he spent two years.
At twelve years of age, a new phase began when he attended a trial organized by Sporting Lisbon. He was so impressive that Sporting signed him to their academy.
Knowing what you want from life is the first step in building a career. After 2 years at Sporting, 14 years old Ronaldo chose professional football as his path. Subsequently, he stopped formal education with the blessing of his mother to focus fully on football.
But this dream seemed to go up in smoke when he was diagnosed with tachycardia, a heart condition in which the heart rate exceeds the normal resting rate. This would have ended his footballing career.
That indomitable will and love for football compelled him to undergo heart surgery which thankfully was successful
The result of his skill, determination, and work ethic saw his promotion at 16 from the youth team. He became the first player to play for Sporting's under-16, under-17, and under-18 teams, the B-team, and the first team all within a season.
In 2003, a friendly match between Sporting Lisbon and Manchester United saw the legend unveiled. United lost the game and both players and coach were amazed at the teenager's sheer skill. He would soon wear United's Number 7 Jersey for a record signing fee then of £12.24 million the rest as we know is history.
Ronaldo has gone on to win Ballon D'or five times, the UEFA Champions League a total of five times, the FA Cup once, and the English Premier League three consecutive times.
He also won La Liga, Spanish Cup, and Copa del Rey and the English Football League two times each. These are but a few of his accomplishments.
The choices we make, the effort we put in to make those choices a reality, the grit and discipline we develop along the way, these things are what make our story stand out as legendary.
" The problem is not the problem, the problem is your attitude about the problem" Johnny Depp
Tags:
inspirational