Portugal and Cristiano

its been ages since i last posted, been busy. its a hectic time of the year!!! though i havn't been lazing around...i have been doing some research and bob like that collecting stuff to put on the blog.

so after the showddown: liverpool 1 v 2 AC milan i have to say KAKA has become another of those good looking footballers that have caught my eye....and so heres some photos etc of kaka...im sure you'll agree hes what we call cute and sweet....looks more of a model than footballer. i think i like him alot but not more than cristiano....i watched kaka play in the final.....i thought he plays real good but he can't run as fast as ronnie and thats the only bad thing about kaka..

So first let us nail those slurs on his education. His school in Madeira, Escola de São João, is a church school and thus strong on discipline and morality, and popular with all stratas of society. His former head teacher recalls in particular Ronaldo’s fine performance in the lead role of a school play about St Francis of Assisi. She says that she always suspected he rushed his homework in order to play football, but that he passed every year.

His sister, Elma, tells a similar story. “He was always in the street playing football,” she said. “The whole family told him to pay attention to his school-work, but he’d just stay in the street with his ball. But it was a good school. The only year that he did fail was when he was 11, when he moved to the mainland, to Sporting Lisbon.”

As for the popular depiction of an upbringing in Third World poverty, that is an exaggeration. Their father was a gardener, their mother a cook. “We worked for a living like everyone did,” Elma said proudly. “Cristiano didn’t have Nike shoes, but it’s not as if he was playing football in bare feet.”

“He was 6 when I got my first job, making aluminium window frames,” Hugo said. “And when Elma started working, too, we did get a better, more stable life. When I got home from work it was 9.30pm and he’d still be there kicking the ball against the wall and I’d have to tell him to go home.”

On the pitch back then, he is remembered for a similar single-mindedness. From his local team, he joined the academy of Nacional, the Madeira club, and neither can recall him enduring a single defeat without crying. “When they were losing, he’d be playing and crying at the same time,” Pedro Talhinhas, his coach at Nacional, said. “We’d talk to him about it but it was his will to win – it overcame his will to contain his tears.

“He was a natural leader, too, even of the boys two years older than him who he was playing with. But he had this troublesome temperament and would get angry and shout at them when he was losing.”

Goncalo Filipe, his former teammate, said: “I certainly remember the crying. We had a very good group and sometimes we’d hug him and tell him not to cry, but it didn’t make any difference. It makes me so proud to know I played with him and that he comes from Madeira.”

These days, Filipe plays third division football and works in a drinks-bot-tling plant. Of that Nacional academy side, the striker is now a mechanic, the captain a truck driver and the goal-keeper sells air-conditioning units. No one else made it in football – or even off the island.

What was special about Ronaldo? Talhinhas acknowledges that he was as good a junior as he ever had, but returns to this burning inner desire. “For someone from this small island to leave home for Sporting Lisbon so young was a very big step,” he said. “He had to go – he needed to be with other players as good as him. But I was concerned for him. Very often he’d say he wanted to come home. But he never gave up the dream.”

He mentions another boy, Steve Andrade, who was at Nacional’s big rivals, MarÍtimo, the same age as Ronaldo and rated his equal. Andrade, too, was offered an early ticket to the mainland, but opted to stay. Tomorrow, he will turn out for Madeira’s third division side, União. And the hearts and television sets of Madeira will be far away with Ronaldo at Wembley.

this article is seroiusly long, takes 5 and one quater sides on word document!!!!
"BUT IT BROUGHT TEARS TO MY EYES ONCE AGAIN"



The streets of Lisbon will be empty tonight. In Porto, Braga and Setubal the story will be the same. Football fans will venture out only if their local bar boasts a decent television set.
Families will stay at home, forsaking the joys of a Sunday evening in springtime to sit indoors and watch a TV documentary.
The object of their attention will be a man who, at the tender age of 22, has become a national treasure.
For its subject, Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, the broadcast of a documentary recording his rags-to-riches story marks the start of the proudest week of his life, a week in which he will be crowned England’s Footballer of the Year and play for Manchester United against Chelsea in the first FA Cup Final at the new Wembley on Saturday.
For six months, the makers of Planeta Ronaldo followed United’s iconic No 7 to film a unique insight into his life. The result is a documentary that touches not only on the high points of Ronaldo’s career, drawing praise for him from a cast list including Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho and Wayne Rooney, but also on the setbacks Ronaldo has faced in his mission to become the best player in the world.
Throughout his career, "that boy Ronaldo" — as United fans call him — has overcome challenges that would have seen off lesser men.
As a tearful and frightened 12-year-old, he had to leave his home island of Madeira to travel hundreds of miles to follow his dream, fighting loneliness, prejudice and even street robbers along the way.
His talent made him a hit at Sporting Lisbon and a global superstar at United.
But there have been torrid times, failing to save his harddrinking father from an early grave and the fears for his safety following the World Cup.
And as Planeta Ronaldo shows, behind the talented feet lies an enormous heart.
Today,Ronaldo is valued at £50 million but his story began with a very unusual £15,000 deal.
Nacional Madeira owed Sporting Lisbon the money on a journeyman player called Franco and, not wishing to pay it, offered the 12-yearold Ronaldo instead.
Sporting were sceptical but after five minutes of an impromptu trial, they knew they had a bargain.
It meant a huge lifestyle change for Ronaldo, who left his family in Madeira off the north African coast for the bustling Portuguese capital Lisbon.
"It was very traumatic to leave my family," says Ronaldo in the programme. "I had never even been on an aeroplane before. When I saw my mother crying at the airport, it made me want to cry as well.
"There were a lot of tears in my first few weeks in Lisbon. Madeira is so small, I couldn’t believe the traffic and noise of a capital city. About 10 of us lived in a room inside the Sporting Lisbon stadium.
"In the beginning, nobody could understand me because of my accent and I couldn’t understand them. I used to call my family wheneverI could. I remember buying phone cards and looking at the units go down as I spoke to my parents and brothers and sisters."
Ronaldo’s trials and tribulations had a menacing side, too. He recalls one incident in particular: "A gang jumped on me and my team-mates in the street. The other players ran away but I stood up and fought — and the robbers didn’t get anything."
And all through his young life’s ordeal, Ronaldo clung to his ambitions. "No matter how bad things got," he says, "I had this burning dream."
He had to vie for attention with another young star at Sporting called Ricardo Quaresma, but Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, then the coach of Porto, says he could see his talent straight away.
Mourinho tells the programme: "I went to watch Sporting and there was this tall, elegant kid playing up front. I had never heard of him before but my eyes were drawn to him right away. I turned to my assistant and said: 'Who is this player, he must be the son of Van Basten'. Their styles were so similar. Cristiano has gone on to become a great player."
It was Sir Alex, however, who gave Ronaldo his big break in 2003, signing the unknown teenager to replace the most famous player on the planet, David Beckham.
Ferguson says: "We played Sporting in a friendly and my players came in at half-time and said: 'Please sign him'. They didn’t know I had already been with the Sporting directors the previous evening to talk about it!
"A lot of players wouldn’t want the No 7 shirt worn by Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and Beckham but I knew Cristiano would thrive on it with his confidence and ability. He caused an explosion among our fans from his very first game, when I brought him on against Bolton.
"I’ve had some great players like Bryan Robson and Roy Keane in 20 years at United but Cristiano is the best now in terms of sheer ability and imagination. He has improved so much in two years. That is not by accident, it is because he practises every day and has the desire to get better."
Ronaldo nearly quit the Premiership last year after becoming the victim of a hate campaign following his role in Rooney’s sending-off at the World Cup.
Ronaldo initially thought United did not care about him and when Ferguson visited him face-to-face in Portugal, he found the young player genuinely frightened for his safety. In the documentary, Ferguson reveals how Ronaldo was won over.
"I tried to contact Cristiano after the England game but didn’t get any reply," says Sir Alex. "I thought he wasn’t returning my calls but then found out I’d been using an old number. Cristiano hadn’t got any message from me and might have felt I hadn’t shown any interest in him.
"After the tournament David (Gill, chief executive) and myself flew to Val do Lobo on a private plane to see him.
"Cristiano had fears about the reaction back in England. I explained that we had gone through the same thing with David Beckham when they were burning effigies of him after the 1998 World Cup. I told him that English people talk more than they actually do anything. They might make a lot of noise but they wouldn’t harm him physically.
"We said he could move house to somewhere in the countryside, more private, and that helped.
"He got a lot of boos in his first away game back against Charlton. Then, he beat a man and hit the crossbar with a tremendous shot. They were suddenly silent because they were terrified of what he was doing to their team. I told Cristiano the answer was to quieten the fans with his talent. And he always had the courage to show his talent."
Yet again, Ronaldo took the brave rather than the easy option, staying in Manchester rather than taking up offers from Barcelona and Real Madrid.
"I did think about my future," he admits. "I asked my friends, family and my agent (Jorge Mendes) what I should do. They all had the same opinion,that I should stay and fight to win the fans in England over. So that’s what I did."
In Rooney, his World Cup sparring partner,he found someone to share the burden of superstardom. They have become the most talked-about combination at United since Best, Law and Charlton and if they hit it off at Wembley on Saturday, there may be little Chelsea can do to stop them.
Rooney rarely gives interviews but wanted to appear on a programme about Ronaldo. "He deserves to be voted World Footballer of the Year and I hope he is," says Rooney. "He has been booed around the country for various reasons but has shown everyone how good he is. English fans only boo good players so that’s a sign of respect really. I think the supporters are secretly happy he is in the English league.
"He has signed a new contract now, although we think part of the deal was to have a mirror in the dressing room so he can look at himself all the time!"
If Ronaldo seals his incredible season with a Wembley goal, you can expect him to glance up at ".
The death of his father, Dinis, in 2005 is the one issue that, even now, Ronaldo can only skirt around rather than address directly.
In Portugal, it is widely known that Dinis suffered a chronic liver condition due to heavy drinking and Ronaldo, who was very close to his father, invested time and money seeking the best treatment for him.
Unlike on the football pitch, it was a battle Ronaldo could not win and in September 2005,while on international duty in Russia, he received the shattering news from Portugal coach Luis Felipe Scolari that his father had died.
Scolari recalls: "I was told first what had happened and knew it was my responsibility to tell Ronaldo. As you can expect, it was a very bad moment. He was heartbroken.
"We talked and talked. I spoke quietly about the time I lost my father and as we spoke he calmed down. He decided to play the match against Russia rather than fly back to Portugal immediately. I now think Ronaldo is not just the best player in the world, but the best person, too."
Millions watching television in Portugal tonight will undoubtedly agree.
Family comes first for the boy named after a President
Cristiano Ronaldo has used his fortune and fame to help the people who mean most to him — his mother, Dolores, brother,Hugo, and sisters Elma and Catia.
As the Planeta Ronaldo documentary shows, the family are extremely close and Ronaldo has encouraged and helped them since he signed for Manchester United in 2003 and even more so since the death of his father, Dinis, in 2005.
"My mother was a cook who worked hard all her life," he said. "The first thing I did after signing for United was to call her and say she didn’t have to work ever again."
Catia said: "He is an amazing brother. He calls his family every day and about 30 of us spend Christmas with him in Manchester.
"Growing up in Madeira,we had a comfortable home, but it wasn’t big. Cristiano shared a bedroom with Hugo and the two girls shared another bedroom. Now there is plenty of room for everyone, sometimes too much room!
"Cristiano bought me a watch last Christmas but I find it difficult to buy him things because he has them already.He likes simple family presents really, so last time I got him a framed picture of my six-year-old son Rodrigo. He is a very proud uncle!"
Ronaldo is the youngest of four and while Catia, 29, is forging a career as a pop singer for herself under the stage-name Ronalda, elder sister Elma is also using her brother’s fame. She is opening a clothes shop in Madeira called CR7, after Ronaldo’s initials and shirt number at United. Hugo, meanwhile, plays lowerdivision football in Madeira.
The one topic Planeta Ronaldo does not touch upon is the subject of the star’s love life. Ronaldo has been linked with a series of women, including Hollyoaks actress Gemma Atkinson and Spanish TV anchorwoman Merche Romero but he has been reluctant to discuss his private life.
Catia also explained why Ronaldo was named.
"Ronald Reagan was always in the news at the time he was born and my Dad thought the name sounded a bit different," she said.
"It wasn’t because he had any opinion on if he was a good president — they just liked the name!"

Football Stars Plead For Missing Madeleine
Updated: 13:23, Wednesday May 09, 2007

Football stars Cristiano Ronaldo and John Terry have made appeals for the return of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann.

Manchester United and Portugal star Ronaldo said anyone with information about the three-year-old's disappearance should come forward.
Visit Sky News Online's special section for all the latest on the search for Maddie.
"I was very upset to hear of the abduction of Madeleine McCann," he told MUTV, the TV channel of Manchester United.
"I appeal to anyone with information to come forward.
"Please come forward."
Chelsea captain Terry, flanked by his Portuguese team-mate Paulo Ferreira, said Madeleine's family were going through a terrifying ordeal.
"We were devastated to hear that young Maddie was abducted," he said.
"Our thoughts and feelings go out to her parents, her family and we are urging anyone out there with any information at all, please, please, please come forward.
"It's terrifying thing for her family to go through. She's only young so please, please, please come forward."

Portuguese police say they have interviewed more 100 people, 500 apartments have been searched and 350 pieces of information are being looked at.
But a press conference descended into chaos as the man leading the inquiry accused the media of hampering the investigation.
Chief inspector Oligeario Sousa rounded on reporters as they asked for more information.
Portuguese law prevents police from releasing information about the case while they search for a suspect.
Mr Sousa said earlier reports that a man had been spotted with a child matching Madeleine's description in Nelas, in the north of the country, were false.
Local detectives have been criticised over the handling of the case since the three-year-old went missing from a holiday complex in Portugal last Thursday.
A senior child protection expert earlier told Sky News that British police must be drafted in urgently to help investigate the abduction.
Two child abduction experts have arrived in Portugal from the UK to help in the inquiry, Sky News crime correspondent Martin Brunt said.

British detectives are reported to be probing British paedophiles with links to the Algarve.
Former detective Mark Williams-Thomas, now a leading child protection expert, said the British police are among the world leaders in this kind of inquiry.
"The British police have gained a real insight and expertise into this kind of crime. They would handle it differently, " he said.
"Any inquiry should focus on three elements: access, opportunity and motive. It's about establishing how rather than why.
"A house-to-house search is the first thing to do, then a media appeal asking for information and sightings, giving a description and timeline."
Away from the centre of the resort, half-built or derelict buildings lie dotted around scrubland where sniffer dog teams have concentrated their searches.
"The fact that teams are now searching these areas for a second time suggests the police either have direct intelligence or it's to deflect criticism should anything turn up at a later stage."

Anyone with information can call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. If you are calling from Portugal call +44 800555 111.

he won his third award of the year "football writers award"

and now the 4th " footballer of the year"

so the trophy table must be getting filled up!!!

just cannot get enough of this guy,,,like i've said before

i very frequently at school at lunch time and break time sing.(and irritate my friends)

"""""cus everytime we touch i get this feeling and everytime we kiss i swear i can fly can't you hear my heat beat fast i want this to last, need you by my side"""""

and me and nehali don't know wether you get a "feeling" when you kiss someone sooooo were going to tell eachother when we've found out!!!

ha ha ha

man city 0 v man utd 1

goal by ronaldo's penalty 34"

girls football

well, girls football isn't a really big thing i mean nobody watches womens football world cup or nothing....



at last summer is here,come a bit early and sometimes the sun hides away other times it roasts us in our lame, stupidly fitting uniforms. the field at school is filled with boys playing their favourite game football. i never knew what was so good about playing football especially not at school. boys always playing football, got over competitive, swear like really bad etc



we, as girls used to play lobby, you could call it mini lobby. we have a tennis ball which we nicked off some boys a couple of years back and put our name on it, then we nicked some other girls tennis ball. ha ha ha



any ways we USED to play lobby. then one day , perhaps a week ago or so we started kicking the tennis play around. we looked like idiots but we loved it, it was so fun.

but playing on the grass wasn't fun beacause you can't dribble it etc and cant kick it properly.



so we got a small football sorted out to play with. today we played a proper match with the year 7 girls , they are our friends. it was fun. the score in the end was 3-2 to the year 10's-thats us. thoug the year 7's were good because they started the scoring

i scored two goals and neelam the first one as striker ... my name: c ronaldo obviosly

nehali's ususally rooney...funny



we had loads of fun shouting and i also understand why boys act the way they do after and during playing football.



i think we've turned in to football freakettes. ha ha ha

me and nehali constantly trying to do stepovers and tricks....they don't work out how we want them to and we some times kick VERY bent

but thats fun



heres a wallpaper of cristiano..looks angel.... ish

i love him.....he's the only reason that i even bothered to play football