Ronaldo has become the first player to score 100 goals in the Uefa Champions League after the competitions rebranding from the old European Cup. It would surprise many that Ronaldo’s first goal in the competition came in a quarterfinal tie against AS Roma in 2007. Ten years later, his three goals on Tuesday and five overall in the quarterfinal tie against Bundesliga powerhouse Bayern Munich has taken Real Madrid to its seventh consecutive semi-final.
When Real Madrid was paired against Bayern Munich, few analysts gave the team a chance to sail through. Much depended on the team’s performances and especially the sub-par display of their talisman. When Lionel Messi started the competition scoring hatricks against Manchester City and Celtic in the group stage, Ronaldo struggled to score against Legia Warsaw in two games in the group stage and Napoli in the round of 16.
The celebrations that came after the game were not only for Ronaldo's performance, but the performance of the entire team and coach Zinedine Zidane. The introduction of Marco Asensio mid-way through the second half raised numerous eyebrows from pundits as to his experience and contributions to such a high profile game but the apprentice showed his master Carlo Ancelotti that the little things he learned from him as assistant manager were put to good use.
Zinedine Zidane must continue his fitness plan for Ronaldo
Ronaldo turned 32 in February, and like every footballer his body started to give him signals of age. Zidane has created the perfect way to manage his fitness by giving him match-day rest in low-profile games so as to help the star maintain match fitness, and evidently this has yielded results, as the forward gives 100% to the team in crucial games.
Real Madrid can win the UEFA Champions league if Ronaldo maintains goal scoring consistency
After winning two titles in three seasons the team has made it to the semi-finals and have two games to play in order to possibly reach another final. Ronaldo’s hatrick in the quarter final against Bayern Munich comes one year after he singled-handedly scored a hatrick against Wolfsburg that ensured a semi-final tie against Manchester City in the 2015/16 season.
The 2016/17 season has provided lots of surprises, including Paris Saint Germain’s dominant display against FC Barcelona in the first leg of the round of 16 to its unfortunate demise at Camp Nou in the second leg. There will be great pairings in the competition when the draw is made on Friday, April 21, 2017, but with Cristiano Ronaldo, the team can eliminate any team it is paired against.
Real Madrid returns to domestic duties in La Liga against FC Barcelona on Saturday, April 22.