A decade on, it still seems to be barely believable. Cristiano Ronaldo did something to behold in the 2007/08 season, and it remains etched in the Premier League landmarks.
One needs to remember that Ronaldo was really good prior to the season in question as well. He captured the trio of individual awards – PFA Player of the Year, Young Player of the Year and Football Writers’ Player of the Year as Manchester United won their first league title in four years. But the next campaign saw him truly realise his mammoth potential, as he evolved into the best player in the world.
Let us take a look at why that season was so remarkable. The Portuguese forward scored 42 goals in all competitions, as United won the Premier League and Champions League double. In the league, he scored 31 in 34 games, and his scoring rate was a goal every 88.6 minutes. Now consider that he played as a winger for the whole season. And, he was just 22 when the season commenced.
Ronaldo’s campaign, surprisingly, did not begin on the best of notes. He was sent off in a 1-1 draw at Portsmouth, which resulted in a three-match ban. Sir Alex Ferguson fined his player, but Ronaldo returned with a bang. He began to win matches for his team individually, and at times he was a one-man wrecking ball.
Ronaldo opened his account for the season at Birmingham, and the floodgates were opened. He scored glorious free-kicks against Bolton, Sunderland, and Portsmouth (if you haven’t watched the Portsmouth one, do it). A hat-trick against Newcastle followed, and so did his first goal against Liverpool. His aerial game improved vastly, and he scored decisive headers in the semi-final and final of the Champions League.
The cheeky goal against Aston Villa by virtue of a back-flick was a true symbol of the season he was having. Uberly confident, and frighteningly dominant. Aside from the goals, Ronaldo’s link-up play with the likes of Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez was scintillating to watch. The trio meshed quite well and conjured up some sumptuous goals.
Despite the goals, Ronaldo’s dribbling didn’t wane, as he was deployed as a winger by Sir Alex. The shimmies and flicks brought the viewers to their feet, and he used to cut in habitually to devastating effect. He had finally added the end product which his talent deserved.
Ronaldo’s season culminated in Moscow, as Manchester United faced domestic rivals Chelsea for European supremacy. The final was a bittersweet one for Ronaldo, though mostly sweet. He scored the opening goal in regular time, a towering header which gave his side the lead. The match would be decided on penalties, and United prevailed despite Ronaldo’s miss in the shootout.
The validation for the campaign arguably came in December 2008, when he claimed the Ballon d’Or for the first time in his career. A host of other individual accolades were bestowed upon him, but this one was unquestionably the greatest.
In the Premier League era, only nine players have scored 30 or more goals in a season. Out of the other eight, only Andy Cole in 1993/94 was younger than Ronaldo in 2008, and the season had 42 games then. Also, only one out of the other eight was a wide player. The 2007/08 campaign firmly established Ronaldo on the pedestal of elite players, and he has not left it since.
As Ryan Giggs said, “Ronaldo can score with either of his feet, his head and now he is scoring with the goal at his back. I bet he can score on a wheelchair.” If he had taken a wheelchair onto the pitch in 2007/08, he would have surely done it, Ryan.
