Number 19: Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo is not the most successful player of our day. But he is probably the most complete: a dribbler, goalscorer, and strongman all in one.
At just 18 years old, in an exhibition game with Sporting Lisbon against Manchester United, the boy from the island of Madeira impressed his opponents so thoroughly that on the flight home several of them persuaded Alex Ferguson to sign him. Cristiano had already agreed to join Arsenal, but United offered more. That summer of 2003, the Portuguese kid-- skinny, quick to cry-- looked an inadequate replacement for the departing David Beckham. Pretty soon, United’ s new No. 7 had consigned Becks to history. Aged 19, Cristiano very nearly won Euro 2004 with Portugal, but lost the final to Greece.
In Manchester, first as a winger and later as a striker, he racked up the prizes: three straight league titles from 2007 through 2009, and the Champions League in 2008. That night in Moscow he scored United’ s only goal with a header, but missed his penalty in the shootout.