Despite achieveing everything under the sun in club football, Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup appearances have not been that memorable.
However, he did produce fleeting moments of magic on the field for Portugal. FIFA.com takes a look at the Portuguese talisman's top three moments in the three World Cups he has played in.
England 0-0 Portugal (1-3 in Penalties) -- Quarterfinal, July 1, 2006, Gelsenkirchen:
This was the game that almost sealed Cristiano Ronaldo's exit from his then club Manchester United. A tense last-eight tie against his adopted country was settled by penalties, with Ronaldo stepping up to send a superb winning kick into the top-right corner.
However, during regulation time, controversy surrounded Ronaldo after Wayne Rooney's sending off. The English media pinned Rooney's dismissal on Ronaldo's shoulders as the Portuguese complained to the referee after his then United teammate violently stepped on Ricardo Carvalho.
After scoring the winning spot-kick, Ronaldo wheeled away in celebration as he dedicated the penalty to his father. Dinis Aveiro had died less than a year earlier and Ronaldo pointed to the sky and mouthed: “You there… this one’s for you!”
"When I win something, I always think about my dad,” he has since said. “He’s always looking at me and out for me. He sends me messages in my dreams because what I am today is thanks to him and to my mother.”
Portugal’s German adventure would end in the next round though, as it lost to France thanks to a solitary goal from Ronaldo’s current coach, Zinedine Zidane.
The quote: "I'm full of confidence and I shoot strong,” Ronaldo on his decisive spot kick.
Portugal 7-0 Korea DPR -- Group stage, June 21, 2010, Cape Town:
Ronaldo went into this match having not scored in a competitive match for Portugal in over two years. Shut out by Côte d'Ivoire in the opener, he saw six Portuguese goals come from elsewhere against Korea DPR before finally breaking through three minutes from time.
Portugal made it to the Round-of-16, where it lost 1-0 to eventual champion Spain.
Portugal 2-1 Ghana -- Group stage, June 26, 2014, Brasilia:
The Finals in Brazil was Ronaldo’s most disappointing to date, marked out by Portugal’s group-stage exit. But having failed to score or make a significant impact in the 4-0 defeat to Germany or the 2-2 draw with USA that ensured Portugal's sorry exit from the first round, Ronaldo finally found the target against Ghana to seal victory with ten minutes remaining.
That strike was only the Portguese's World Cup goal, and that came in no earlier than 70 shots in the tournament. Since 1966, only his Brazilian namesake (75) and Italy legend Luigi Riva (71) have gone for goal more often at the global showpiece.
The quote:
"It would be a lie to say that we are a top team. We have a very limited team and we are not at the best level. There are no miracles. We knew we would have a tough group, with perhaps teams better than us. I never thought we could win the tournament."
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