Cristiano Ronaldo 101 Blog

Sir Alex Ferguson has ordered Cristiano Ronaldo to cut back on his practice to prevent the PFA Player of the Year burning himself out.

With so many defenders injured, and both Park Ji-sung and Louis Saha sidelined as well, there will be even more pressure on the 22-year-old to deliver over the final weeks of the campaign.

And Ferguson is anxious the winger does not extend himself too much on the training ground.

‘You have to drag Cristiano off the training pitch sometimes because he likes to practice so much,’ said Ferguson.

‘It is part of his but maybe he overdid it a little last week.

‘We are trying to preserve his energies for the important games, so we are going to have to cut back on his practice.

‘He really has been carrying the banner for us for a long time now but we are really down on players now so there is a big onus on the boy.’

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Cristiano Ronaldo intends to take his game to another level after scooping both the PFA Player and Young Player of the Year awards.

The Portuguese winger declared it was a ‘big honour’ to be singled out by his peers - but does not intend to rest on his laurels.

Ronaldo said: ‘I want to keep working hard and getting better because these trophies have now given me more motivation.

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Cristiano Ronaldo won both the PFA Player and Young Player of the Year Award 2007.

Ronaldo became the first player to win both awards in the same year since Andy Gray in 1977; Ronaldo received his awards at a gala dinner in London on Sunday night (April 22).

Ronaldo has always been the favourite; his only real competitor for Player of the Year was Chelsea’s Didier Drogba, who is 2nd on the list, while Ronaldo’s Manchester United team mate Paul Scholes in 3rd.

The 2nd place for young players is Arsenal’s Cesc Fabregas; Tottenham’s Aaron Lennon 3rd.

Manchester United also have a strong hold for PFA Premier League Team of the Year, filling 8 out of 11 spots. It will be quite an irony if Chelsea wins the Premier League and FA Cup in the end, with only one player in the Team of the Year… touch wood.

Edwin van der Sar, Gary Neville, Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand, Patrice Evra, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Didier Drogba (Chelsea) and Dimitar Berbatov (Tottenham)

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson received a Special Merit Award.

United took an early lead in the 3rd minute from Kieran Richardson, and then blew their advantage away just before half time with Mark Viduka’s equalizer for Boro.

2nd half was boring. Boro all out defending, and worked perfectly against United. Frankly it was a poor game by United’s standard; credits to Middlesbrough for defending well… but United had been poor in the 2nd half.

In fact the Red Devils were lucky not to concede a penalty late in the game; replay showed that it was a foul in the box. That’s why I am putting the title “Lucky United.”

It was a 6-point lead a few weeks ago at the Premiership table; it could be reduced to one if Chelsea win their next match.

I am thinking if Cristiano had used up all their fuel against AS Roma… after that smashing 7-1 victory, Ronaldo’s form seemed to be dropping quite a bit. Hope he could perform to his best again, and he needs to do that soon… Manchester United need him.

Ronaldo has opened a boutique in his hometown Funchal, Madeira. He used his initials and shirt number to name the trendy new store CR7.

Cristiano has been very involved in choosing kit for this upmarket store. CR7 is stuffed with T-shirts and jeans for fellas, as well as clothes, handbags, necklaces and belts for the girls.

And the star has picked a glam range of funky jewellery for the fellas too, including chunky shark-tooth bracelets and necklaces.

While Cristiano is in Britain earning his £31million five-year pay packet with United, he has hired sisters Katia and Elma as managers to run the place.

Within hours the shop was mobbed. One fan said: “Cristiano has made everyone on the island very proud. It’s fitting he chose his birth city for the shop.”

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Sir Alex Ferguson claims Middlesbrough have become “paranoid” about Cristiano Ronaldo.

The United manager’s comment, ahead of the sides’ meeting at Old Trafford on Saturday evening, follows a series of controversial penalty incidents involving the player during encounters between the two clubs this season.

Fouls on Ronaldo, by Boro goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer and defender Jonathan Woodgate, led to crucial penalties in last December’s Premiership meeting on Teesside and the FA Cup fifth-round replay at Old Trafford last month, both games which United won.

The 22-year-old also scored from the penalty spot after Boro midfielder George Boateng was penalised for handball during the initial FA Cup tie at the Riverside Stadium.

Critical comments against Ronaldo by Boateng, for which he was disciplined by Middlesbrough, have soured the relationship between the two clubs, as have suggestions from the Boro camp that Ronaldo has dived to win penalties

Ferguson said: “I think Middlesbrough have become paranoid about Ronaldo, which, to a certain extent, you can understand when you acknowledge that penalties have cost them in their last three fixtures with us.

“They have disputed them all but, for me, the referee has got it right on all three occasions.”

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Cristiano Ronaldo needs to maintain his current form for another two years before he can be called one of the world’s greatest players, claims Pele, the man regarded by many as the game’s finest player.

The Brazilian, who won three World Cups, said Ronaldo was “one of the good players” but it was too soon to call him one of the best in the world.

“To mention him as one of the best players in the world is very soon… We have Kaka, who plays very well, too.

“Four or five years ago, we had Ronaldinho in good shape. We have to wait a little bit. Let’s see, in one or two more years, if they keep at the same level.”

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I agree with Pele. Ronaldo is probably the best player in the world at the moment, but it’s too early to call him a great. He had yet to win anything significant at both the club level and international level… and as Pele mentioned, Ronaldo would need to consistently perform like this for a few years before calling him a great.

Diego Maradona has admitted his pain in hospital is being eased by the joy of watching Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Argentinian legend saw Manchester United star Ronaldo in action from his sick bed as the Reds destroyed Watford 4-1 in the FA Cup semi-final on Saturday.

Maradona told personal physician Alfredo Cahe he was ‘enchanted’ by Ronaldo and called him a ‘phenomenon’.

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