When you think of greatness and absolute brilliance in football, Cristiano Ronaldo will definitely be one of the names. The Manchester United star has been at the top of the game since 2003. That was the year he joined Manchester United. He managed to impress Sir Alex Ferguson in a friendly, manager of United then.
He enjoyed a wonderful career with the team before moving to Real Madrid in 2009. It was with Real that Ronaldo truly made a mark as one of the best players in the history of the game. He became the club’s top scorer, beating Raul. He has scored 450 goals in just 438 games for the Spanish club. Those types of numbers have not been replicated by any other player.
CR became the best player as he helped them win 4 UEFA Champions Leagues in 5 years (2014, 2016,2017,2018). In July 2018, he made a shocking switch to the Italian club Juventus. Many thought he would stay in Madrid after having a successful time with them.
If we’re being honest, he had just won the UCL that year. It seemed like he was going to go for another one the next year as well. However, he wanted to leave the club. The reasons are unknown to this day but many reports claim that Real’s president Florentino Perez played a part in Ronaldo wanting to leave.
Ronaldo’s career may look like he was always successful. And that he always had it easy. If you have been following him for a while, you would know that he is one of the most hardworking athletes in the history of sports.
CR7’s father José Dinis Aveiro passed away in 2005
He has faced countless setbacks in his life. It would be in his dating life or kids, or his parents. Speaking of parents, only Ronaldo’s mother is usually with her son. What happened to his father?
Ronaldo joined Man Utd in 2003. It was the start of something special for him and his family. He comes from a small town in Portugal called Madeira. For someone that small to join the biggest club in England at the time, it was a huge honor for his family.
In July 2005, his condition went from bad to worse. However, just two months later, his health deteriorated even more. He passed away in Portugal in September. When Ronaldo heard that his dad’s health was bad, he immediately booked an air ambulance to take him to London. But Jose passed away as his liver and kidneys gave up on him.
Many fans have wondered why Ronaldo’s father drank too much. His mother, Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro removed the lid in CR’s film, “RONALDO”. She said, “I think it was because he joined the Portuguese Colonial War in Angola, and he returned angry because of the war. And when he came back, he felt very angry and although he never mistreated his children, I became his victim.”
Cristiano Ronaldo wishes his father could witness the heights he has reached
When you are a player of Ronaldo’s stature, you would want your loved ones to see how successful you are. The 37-year-old is no different and he has spoken many times about it. In the past, he has said, “When I speak about my father, I don’t have the words. The sadness is for me to be the number one and for him to have never seen it. All my family saw, but my father didn’t see any of it…”
Cristiano Ronaldo:
“When I speak about my father, I don’t have the words. The sadness is for me to be the number one and for him to have never seen it. All my family saw, but my father didn’t see any of it…” 😭 pic.twitter.com/TjScMNQtPB
— TCR. (@TeamCRonaldo) September 17, 2019
A while ago, popular TV personality Piers Morgan showed a video of his late father to CR7. Upon watching the video, Ronaldo broke into tears right away. He said, “Sorry, I’ve never seen that video.”
Cristiano Ronaldo broke down after being shown a video he had never seen of his late father during an interview with Piers Morgan.pic.twitter.com/xXL4FIVjMM
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) September 19, 2019
In the video, Ronaldo’s father mentioned that he was proud of his son. At the time, Ronaldo was the best player in the biggest team in England, and one of the best teams in the world. For his son to be at that height, Jose was extremely proud of his son.
Sir Alex Ferguson became a father figure to Cristiano Ronaldo after the death
The passing did not affect only Maria. Ronaldo also opened up about how he felt about his father. The former Real Madrid star said, “My father was very funny when he was drunk. He used to tell a lot of stories. He was drunk nearly every day. And when that happens it’s not easy to have a conversation to get to know my father a bit more.”
When his father passed away, Ronaldo was with Man Utd. His coach at the time, Sir Alex Ferguson insisted that he should go and see his father. It was during the most important part of the season, and Ronaldo was the key player. When Sir Alex said that Ronaldo’s priority was his father, he touched the player’s heart.
In a BBC documentary “Sir Alex Ferguson: Secrets of Success”, Ronaldo spoke about the incident. He mentioned, “When my dad was sick in London and was in hospital — very bad, in a coma — I had a conversation with [Ferguson],” Ronaldo said. “I said, ‘Boss, I don’t feel good.”
“We are in a key moment in the league and the Champions League, but I say, ‘Boss, I don’t feel good. I want to see my dad.'[He said] ‘Cristiano, you want to go one day, two days, one week, you can go. I’m going to miss you here because you know you are important, but your dad [comes] first.’ When he told me that, I thought, ‘This guy’s unbelievable,” he continued.