RONALDO: THE PREMIER LEAGUE’S BEST EVER PORTUGUESE PLAYER?

During his six-year spell with Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo established himself as one of the world’s elite players. At the time, the winger was pivotal to Manchester United’s success, helping the Red Devils secure three consecutive Premier League titles between 2006 and 2009. Moreover, during this period, the now 35-year-old also claimed the illustrious Ballon d’Or award in 2008 after scoring 31 top-flights goals in 34 games. But, is the Juventus attacker the league’s best Portuguese competitor?

What Do the Records Say?

In addition to Ronaldo’s three Premier League titles, the former Real Madrid winger also won the Champions League, Club World Cup, Community Shield, FA Cup, and League Cup under Sir Alex Ferguson. As touched on above, the Portugal international also became the first United player to win the Ballon d’Or since George Best in 1968.

From a goalscoring perspective, the six-foot-two attacker is, at the time of writing, the Premier League’s most prolific Portuguese player. Across his 196 appearances, Ronaldo found the net on 84 occasions. By comparison, this total is 55 more than the current second-highest scoring Portugal-born participant, Luis Boa Morte. Moreover, the 2008 Ballon d’Or winner is also in the top three for all-time assists from Portuguese players in the Premier League, one behind Boa Morte, and nine away from his former United teammate, Nani.