More than just a player, the Brazilian was a a true icon, as well as a symbol of redemption and resilience
Ronaldo's career has a uniqueness that sets it apart from others. All football lovers, even the less passionate ones, would be able to describe the most significant snapshots of 'O Fenomeno's' journey.
The incredible goal in the UEFA Cup final against Lazio, the slalom between Compostela's defenders, lifting the World Cup with anything but an ordinary hairstyle, but also the 'crack' of his knee at the Olympic Stadium and the infamous photo of the plane steps that brought the Selecao home after France '98. Five snapshots of a career rich in epic, unforgettable, and above all, iconic images.
Because Ronaldo, perhaps even above the great footballer he was, was an icon. In an era where the game was changing from a technical, athletic and economic standpoint, the boy from the dusty streets Bento Ribeiro was to the forefront of that transformation.
Getty ImagesWhat if…
Writing about the Brazilian star without falling into the trap of rhetoric is a very challenging task. Much has been written and said about Ronaldo, but probably one of the most unpopular opinions one can have about him is the following: Would the idea of Ronaldo that remains in the collective imagination have been the same even without the physical problems that inevitably conditioned his career?
Some argue that it was precisely that aura of 'what if', or 'what could have been' that made him an immortal icon. Those reflections have, to some extent, contributed to further enhancing the myth of a player who, despite everything, was able to make his mark like few others in the history of this sport.
When, despite being courted by AC Milan and Barcelona, Ronaldo decided to join PSV, he and his entourage demonstrated noteworthy foresight. His two seasons spent in the Eredivisie allowed Ronaldo to acclimate to European football without the harsh impact of difficult leagues like Serie A or La Liga of the late 1990s. and without the pressure of fans who were used to winning everything immediately. As Ronaldo himself has recounted several times, settling in the Netherlands was not the easiest, but the opportunity to make a difference on the field against lesser opponents helped him resist any hints of homesickness.
Though his second and final season in Eindhoven was affected by a knee injury that sidelined him for half the campaign, Ronaldo's stint at PSV opened the doors for a big leap. Now he was ready for Barcelona – and perhaps more than anyone expected.
Ronaldo's year in Catalunya is hard to forget for anyone who witnessed it, as he scored 34 goals in 37 league matches, and 47 in 49 across all competitions. He produced stunning plays, alien-like accelerations, goals galore, and an ability to score after dribbling past even the goalkeeper that had never been before. The Ballon d'Or that followed was an inevitability.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportThe Inter years
Despite that Golden Ball, it would be during his time at Inter where Ronaldo would live his most dramatic moments. It began with the famous illness he suffered just hours before the 1998 World Cup final in France and continued with the terrible double knee injury between 1999 and 2000 that definitively hampered his ascent. It culminated with the tears shed on the bench at Roma's Olympic Stadium when he saw the Scudetto slip away at the very last turn.
But just as opposing defenders could not completely contain 'O Fenomeno', neither could misfortune. He rose again and reclaimed everything, winning the World Cup in 2002, and also the second Ballon d'Or that of his career. That came four years on from the night when he seemed destined to confirm another Golden Ball triumph, only for Zinedine Zidane to indelibly write his name in football history, right in front of a helpless Ronaldo in Paris, whom newspapers worldwide described that evening as 'unrecognisable'.
Only later did the truth emerge, allowing everyone to understand that the player who took the field at the Stade de France for the '98 final was merely a ghost of the footballer who, perhaps if the match had taken place 24 hours earlier, would have rewritten history. Because Ronaldo – without delving into rhetoric – was one of the very few footballers capable of winning matches single-handedly, combining flair and spectacle, delivering breath-taking performances without ever losing sight of practicality, the goal, and the final result.
A clinical player who was also incredibly beautiful to watch, Ronaldo moved at a speed that, for that time, bordered on mythical. Even when his legendary pace waned in the latter part of his career, Ronaldo still made his mark by returning to his homeland and contributing with extraordinary goals to a historic double triumph that entered the history of Corinthians.
Getty Redemption & resilience
Tenacity, determination, the ability to bounce back, and the audacity to not give up in the face of adversity: Ronaldo is an extraordinary example of these four traits that distinguish great athletes.
His career arc is indeed a story of redemption, starting from the most classic of stereotypes that grants glory to the boy who grew up with countless difficulties and little in his hands, reaching the glitz of Paris in 2002 when, just five years after his first Ballon d'Or, Ronaldo returned to the public eye completely changed, with a different story to tell, but once again holding the most coveted individual award in the sport..
Getting back up after the terrible double knee injury would have been difficult for anyone, but Ronaldo never gave up, believed in himself and resisted the temptation to quit when everything seemed over. And instead, like a true predator, when FIFA decided to expand the squad sizes for the 2002 World Cup from 22 to 23 – seemingly to allow Brazil and Italy to call up Ronaldo and Roberto Baggio, respectively – Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, unlike his Italian counterpart Giovanni Trapattoni, offered the star forward the opportunity to prove his fitness and play a role in South Korea and Japan.
Ronaldo, complete with a broad smile and a unique haircut, seized the chance and led Brazil to glory in a fashion that has only really been replicated by Diego Maradona for Argentina in 1986.
Getty ImagesOff-the-field icon
Ronaldo was just as much an icon for what he did away from the pitch as what he produced on it. His advertising campaigns, which indelibly linked him to brands like Nike and Pirelli, allowed him to become popular even among those who barely followed football.
His decision not to grant rights to EA Sports for the FIFA 99 video game also adds to his legend. Ronaldo had granted exclusive rights for the use of his name to the video game 'Ronaldo V-Football', and no one else could use it until 2001. He was instead renamed to just 'No.9', which due to the popularity of the game became shorthand for the Brazilian among supporters
Of course, the arrival of a certain Portuguese star has meant that the Brazilian has come to be known as 'Ronaldo No.9' by modern fans in a bid to differentiate between him and Cristiano. However, those who saw him play up close still prefer to simply call him 'O Fenomeno', because that's what he was: a phenomenon.
