Cristiano Ronaldo Silences Critics With 5 Goals Against Espanyol [Video]
Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the best, if not the best, association football players in the world today. Despite his incredible accomplishments at Manchester United and Real Madrid, it seems that there are those who are always ready to write off the Portuguese footballer. Ronaldo failed to score in Real’s first two La Liga games, a fact which prompted some critics to immediately declare that the 30-year-old soccer star was in the midst of a drought. Some even went so far as to state that Ronaldo is “past his prime.”
Yet, as Cristiano demonstrated against Espanyol today, counting him out is a mistake that can prove costly.
Goal drought? Past his prime? Nope. Turns out, @Cristiano‘s still pretty good. WATCH: http://t.co/eaNNbZ6229 pic.twitter.com/tQmV7PhWTs
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) September 12, 2015
The Associated Press reports that Ronaldo broke his supposed “dry spell” within the first seven minutes of the game. What followed was a nightmarish period of play for Espanyol against the ruthless Real Madrid player. Cristiano scored again in the 17th and 20th minute. Although he didn’t find the net for the rest of the first half, Ronaldo was instrumental in setting up his teammate Karim Benzema for the fourth goal of the match.
And Ronaldo wasn’t done yet. He answered again in the second half with two more goals, which resulted in a 6-0 shutout victory by Real Madrid over a stunned Espanyol. So much for being off form.
Ronaldo answers critics with remarkable performance. Hawkey: http://t.co/4c9oz5oV6q pic.twitter.com/MNcTqDDJ1g
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) September 13, 2015
The best part of these series of goals by Cristiano Ronaldo is that they once again establish him as a record-breaking player. ESPN reports that the “handful of goals” by Ronaldo made him the all-time leading goal scorer for Real Madrid. They brought his total tally to an incredible 230 goals. While Raul, the previous record holder, reached 228 in 550 matches, Cristiano managed to do it in 204. This means that Cristiano Ronaldo has an average of 1.12 goals for every game he’s played at Madrid!
His dazzling feat made him the 4th greatest goalscorer in La Liga history and today’s game also marked his 28th ever hattrick.
After such an impressive showing by Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid coach Rafa Benitez couldn’t help but praise the future soccer legend. BBC Sports quoted Benitez as saying, “The numbers speak for themselves.”
“Someone who scores so many goals has a place in the history books.”
There’s little doubt that Cristiano Ronaldo will have left a huge impression on the world of international association football by the time he retires. The critics who tried to write him off for beginning the 2015 season with a slow start? Well, they’ve learned that perhaps the last player in La Liga worth doubting is Cristiano Ronaldo.
Did you see Cristiano Ronaldo’s amazing five-goal feat? Share your thoughts below.
[Image Credit: Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images]
