As Cristiano Ronaldo starts on his preparation to resume competitive football with Juventus, bits of his illustrious past were brought back in the past days. In the 2018 World Cup, the Portuguese superstar scored an unforgettable hat-trick and 10 years earlier, he powered Manchester United to a Champions League title win.
While Portugal failed to bring home the bacon two years back, Ronaldo's feat during the prestigious competition will be forever etched in football memory. The scoreboard at the end of the match with Spain read 3-3 but the numbers alone will not tell of a magnificent story.
According to Give Me Sport, the Juventus star conquered the competition on June 15 in Sochi, Russia. His performance was beyond legendary and what displayed for the whole world to see was "an absolute masterclass."
Ronaldo made his mark on that event by clearing the net several times during the competition, which will be remembered as his fourth in as many appearances. It was a personal milestone but the World Cup, something greater would be seen.
Sochi fans ended up as a living witness to Ronaldo's greatness. He was the sole scorer for Portugal's three points against rival Spain, and that hat-trick effort will be registered the first in the World Cup, per the same report.
And going a decade back, the Red Devils became the European champions, largely due to Ronaldo, who wrapped up the season with 42 goals in all competitions. There is no doubt, however, that the highlight of that campaign was United's UCL win with the Portuguese superstar and Sir Alex Ferguson still doing magical things at Old Trafford.
The win was celebrated by Ronaldo in an Instagram post that marked the 12th anniversary of that specific success. According to Metro, the move by the former United's No. 7 only proved there remains a special room in his heart for the Premier League club.
Perhaps, that same affection is the reason that talks of Ronaldo returning to England continue to circulate. The coronavirus pandemic prompted rumors that Juventus, supposedly dealing with financial pressures, might be forced to sell the club's prized player and United will be first in line if reports are to be believed.
Yet the closest that Ronaldo came to a reunion with the Red Devils was in 2013, per the recollection of his fellow United legend Patrice Evra.
Evra revealed that a chat with Ronaldo at that time gave him the impression that the Portuguese was set to return in support of Ferguson's plan to gun for one more Champions League before retiring. The iconic United coach was looking to bring Ronaldo and Gareth Bale to ensure success for his mission.
Ferguson, however, opted for retirement, and the prospect of Ronaldo playing again for United just disappeared.
