Cristiano Ronaldo wants to keep winning trophies - for both himself and Manchester United.
The Portuguese wing ace won the PFA Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year awards last season, and is in the running for this year's World Player of the Year crown.
Ronaldo, 22, told The Sun: "Of course I want to win more trophies and individual awards - for me, that is very important. "I try to improve every year and I'm not the same player I was three years ago. I think I'm a better player now, more mature.
"I understand the game more, I'm more consistent and my team-mates have helped me a lot.
"I like to watch myself on video after the game to see what I do well and what I do badly - and this is making me a stronger and better player."
Last year, the wing wizard won £400 from Sir Alex Ferguson after the Manchester United boss bet him he wouldn't score more than 15 goals.
But no wagers have been placed this time round and Ronaldo added: "I haven't had a bet with the boss this season - maybe it's because he's scared!
"I just want to score more goals than last year. It's always important to score as it's good for your confidence and good for the team.
"But it's important as well to be part of the team, to help the side with assists and good passes and that is what I try to do every game."
Midfield maestro Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice to put Manchester United within touching distance of the Champions League's first knock-out round with a 4-2 win over spirited Dynamo Kiev on Tuesday night.
The Portuguese star outshone birthday boy Wayne Rooney who celebrated turning 22 on Wednesday with a goal at Kiev's NSC Olympiyskiy Stadium. Defender Rio Ferdinand had given the English giants an early lead on 10 minutes, before England striker Rooney snatched the second on 18 - to add to the two he scored against Aston Villa on Saturday - and Ronaldo struck either side of half-time.
"We are very pleased with the result," said United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
"It gives us nine points from three wins and puts us in a strong position.
"With the likes of Ronaldo, Rooney, Giggs and Tevez all back in form and fit, we have plenty of ammunition in attack for the next few games."
Group F leaders United have now won all three of their group stage matches - and 10 of their last 11 games - while qualification is now almost impossible for bottom side Kiev.
When these sides last met in the Champions League at Old Trafford in November 2000, then captain Roy Keane described the corporate element of United's fans as having more interest in the "prawn sandwiches" than the football following his side's 1-0 win.
But United's small band of travelling fans certainly savoured the cocktail of creative football their side produced to comfortably dispatch the hard-working Ukrainian champions.
After two opening defeats to Sporting Lisbon and AS Roma, Dynamo were up against a United side close to full strength.
Captain Ryan Giggs and Ronaldo were on the wings with their lethal partnership of England striker Rooney and Argentinian Carlos Tevez in attack.
England midfielder Paul Scholes was missing after suffering a knee injury in training and is expected to have a scan when the team flies home.
Following wins over Sporting in Lisbon and Roma at Old Trafford, victory in Kiev means United are almost certain to qualify with two home games following against Kiev and Sporting next month.
Dynamo were without injured former Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United forward Sergei Rebrov.
But coach Jozsef Szabo had two key African players back from injury in Senegal centre-back Pape Diakhate and Guinean forward Ismael Bangoura, who fired an early shot straight at United keeper Edwin van der Sar.
United took the lead when Ronaldo was felled by a heavy tackle from Tiberiu Ghioane and Giggs floated the free-kick for Ferdinand's header to beat Kiev goalkeeper and captain Olexandr Shovkovskiy.
The visitors made it 2-0 when Rooney slotted home on 18 minutes after a mix-up in the Kiev defence, but Dynamo hit back as Carlos Correa swung in a corner and Diogo Rincon headed home on 34 minutes.
United were 3-1 up at half-time when Giggs whipped in another cross and an unmarked Ronaldo smashed his header home on 41 minutes.
After the break, Kiev poured on the pressure at the other end only for defender Goran Gavrancic to concede a penalty by handling in the area and Ronaldo converted to make it 4-1 on 68 minutes.
Dynamo pulled a goal back when Bangoura hit a wonderful strike under the diving van der Sar on 78 minutes as the Ukrainians refused to give up the ghost.
Portugal's Ariza Makukula and Cristiano Ronaldo gave them a 2-1 win over Kazakhstan in their Euro 2008 Group A qualifier on Wednesday.
Portugal Captain Cristiano Ronaldo was evidently pleased with the result of his fifty-first appearance for the Selecção das Quinas as his goal ensured that Portugal got to export all three points back home from Kazakhstan. The Manchester United idol is Portugal’s top scorer in the Euro 2008 qualifiers by a long chalk – his eight goals being five above currently injured centre-forward Nuno Gomes and currently injured attacking midfielder Simão.
His strike against Kazakhstan was also his twenty-third for his country at absolute international level, but he was still cautious. “We’re in a far better position in the group but we must remember that there are still two crucial games to be played in Portugal.”
“We knew it wasn’t going to be plain sailing because Kazakhstan is a team that runs a lot but we managed to get things going in the second half because we transformed possession into goals”, he explained.
“We showed that we’re a great team and I would like to congratulate Makukula as we’d played together before in the Under 21s and it was good for him to make his debut scoring as he is a strong player, so I’m happy for him, for me and for Portugal but it’s too soon to really celebrate”.
Cristiano Ronaldo will inherit the Portugual captain's armband from Nuno Gomes tonight as the Selecção das Quinas travel to face Kazakhstan, but insists that the responsibility holds no fear for him...
Cristiano Ronaldo will don the Portuguese captain's armband tonight as his country takes on Kazakhstan in Almaty this evening, but seems entirely unfazed by the responsibility.
"I don't feel any sort of pressure," he shrugged. "The only pressure I feel is that of winning, and to do the shirt justice with a fine performance."
The 22 year old striker has been in fine form for club and country over the past year, suggesting that he will be a key influence in Kazakhstan this evening.
Nonetheless, he claims that his powers depend partially on his various dressing room superstitions.
"I always undergo the same routine," he said of his pre-match rituals.
"Once the coach reveals the lineup, I take a ball into the dressing room and start juggling it.
"It's fun, and it helps relieve any tension that I have in the buildup to the match.
"And like many footballers, I have superstitions. For example, I must always step onto the pitch with my right foot first at the start of a game."
Bruno Alves and Hugo Almeida scored first-half goals Saturday to lead Portugal over 10-man Azerbaijan 2-0 in a European Championship qualifying match.
After three consecutive draws, Portugal won and improved to 20 points from 11 matches in Group A. Alves put the visitors in the lead by scoring off a corner kick in the 12th minute. Almeida made it 2-0 seconds before halftime.
Azerbaijan was reduced to 10 men after Aslan Kerimov elbowed Cristiano Ronaldo into the face in the 27th minute. Portugal outshot the hosts 21-4, including 10 on target.
United fans have backed Cristiano Ronaldo to continue his 2006/07 form and top the Reds' scoring charts come the end of the season.
More than 7000 ManUtd.com visitors participated in the poll, which saw the Portuguese winger blitz the field with a staggering 54 per cent of the votes. Ronaldo scored 23 times last season and has already found the net four times during the current campaign, inlcuding one against former club Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League.
Meanwhile, England international Wayne Rooney, who also scored 23 times last season, placed second in the poll with 30 per cent of the votes, while summer signing Carlos Tevez rounded out the top three. Tevez took some time before netting his first United goal but has now scored twice in his last three league appearances.
Poll Results: Who will finish top scorer in 2007/08? 54% – Cristiano Ronaldo 30% – Wayne Rooney 13% – Carlos Tevez 2% – Louis Saha 1% – Other
Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice as Manchester United blew away their goalscoring woes with an emphatic 4-0 victory against Wigan that sent them top of the Premier League on Saturday.
Ronaldo's double, which followed Carlos Tevez's 54th minute opener, made the game safe for United before Wayne Rooney cemented victory with his first league goal of the season in the closing stages at Old Trafford.
This is Cristiano Ronaldo’s first and only official book. Moments, with a foreword by Sir Bobby Charlton, offers a unique insight into the world of football’s biggest star.
Cristiano Ronaldo realises his youth does not give him the right to claim this book as an autobiography. He does, however, wholeheartedly welcome the reader into his life; sharing thoughts on the most striking and intense experiences of his life on and off the pitch. With these stories, and over 150 sumptuous photographs to accompany the text, his fans will find as much joy in turning the page as they would watching him play football.
Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo has denied ever saying that Roma players begged him for mercy during last season’s meeting in the Champions League.
In the build-up to Tuesday’s re-match between Man Utd and Roma, the press printed extracts from Ronaldo’s book, which supposedly said that some Roma players pleaded with the winger not to “do any more dribbles”. However Ronaldo has rubbished these reports and says that everything has been misinterpreted.
“Read my book and you will see on page 112 exactly what happened,” he stressed. “A Roma player did ask me to stop dribbling, but obviously he was joking just like some English players do when they ask me to switch to the other side of the pitch.
“Roma played well and had some good chances and we aren’t the side we were in April. But we are improving and we will be better at the Olimpico in December.”
Ronaldo also accepted that the elbow he received off Roma striker Mirko Vucinic, which caused him to require stitches for a facial wound, was not deliberate.
“It wasn’t an intentional foul,” Ronaldo said. “It was just one of those things that happen during a game.
“I don’t like black eyes, but Vucinic didn’t do it on purpose and these things happen in football.”
Cristiano Ronaldo could be found yesterday wearing dark shades and a diamond-encrusted baseball cap deliberately pulled low to conceal the gash above his right eye, inflicted by a flailing elbow during Manchester United's 1-0 victory over Roma. Typically, he wore the stitches like a fashion statement. "It's not a problem," he said. "In four or five days I will be beautiful once again."
Ronaldo had to leave the pitch after the collision with Mirko Vucinic but he was at pains to emphasise that Roma's substitute had not set out to injure him. "I don't think it was intentional," he said. "I don't like to look like this but this kind of thing can happen in football." None the less, there was an important issue for Ronaldo to address in the wake of Sir Alex Ferguson's complaints that his talented winger was not getting enough protection from referees. This has been a recurring grievance for Ferguson over the past couple of years but it has gained momentum this season, with the United manager speaking of his concerns that Ronaldo is in danger of suffering a "serious injury".
Ronaldo nodded in agreement when he was reminded of those words and he described Ferguson as doing "a great job trying to protect me". He has already promised the manager he will never again retaliate, as he did against Portsmouth's Richard Hughes to be sent off on the opening week of the season. The Portugal international remembers the subsequent three-game suspension making him "suffer more than at any time in the last three years" and there was a message for any defenders planning to subject him to rough treatment. "I will never allow these players to intimidate me," he said.
He was launching his first book, Moments, and there was a notable air of confidence after the previous night's defeat of Roma, a result that means United have six points from their opening two Champions League ties and look certainties to qualify from Group F. "We are in a great position to win the Champions League this year," he said. "It is the one [club] competition I have not won, and this is my dream for the season. I genuinely believe we have a great chance."
That may be so, but Ronaldo's team-mate, Rio Ferdinand, offered a more conservative appraisal when he admitted being dissatisfied with the team's performances, complaining that they were not doing enough to entertain their supporters, with six of the last eight games ending 1-0. "We always like to keep clean sheets but Manchester United is not just about winning games," Ferdinand said. "We have to entertain the fans as well. When you play for Manchester United that is made very plain to you."
Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo needed four stitches after being elbowed in the face several minutes before the end of Tuesday night's Champions League match at Old Trafford, United manager Alex Ferguson said.
Ronaldo left the pitch in the 85th minute with his face covered in blood and with an injury to his right eyebrow following an elbow from Mirko Vucinic.
"He (Ronaldo) told us that it was a deliberate," Ferguson said after the match which United won 1-0 thanks to a Wayne Rooney goal.
After netting United's winner against Birmingham City, Cristiano Ronaldo insisted his best form is yet to come. The winger's 52nd minute solo effort was his second goal of the campaign and gave United a fifth successive league victory.
Ronaldo, who bagged 23 goals last season, has been happy with his recent form, but said he is yet to hit top gear. "My form is coming," he told MUTV. "I always try to work hard in training and hopefully I will keep improving and more goals will come as well.
"But my main concern is the team - I think only about that. The most important thing in football is getting the three points and I was pleased we did that against Birmingham."
The 22-year-old admitted United rode their luck at times at St. Andrews, but still felt they deserved the win over Steve Bruce's side.
"It was a very tough game against a good team. They created a few difficult moments for us, but thankfully we managed to keep them out," he said.
"We didn't play as well as we can, but sometimes you can win matches without playing well.
"Our good football is coming. We have great players at the club and great staff and we will improve."
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I'm not Ronaldo. I am Cristiano Ronaldo. I like my name. I like wearing shirts written Ronaldo on my back.... 17cr
" I'ma goodsingleton...I'm happywith that.At this moment,Marriage...is NOTon the agenda."- CR -
....According to the newspapers,I have 20 girlfriends...But I have onlymet two or threeof them....- CR -
.....When I left Madeira for Lisbon
l was only 11, was very difficult.
I used to cry everyday,
I will never forget it. I learn how to survie by myself......
"...I was very easy to please.At Christmas and on my birthday,I always wantedto have a football.In those dayswe didn't havethe moneyget nice presents,but if I was given a ball"I was happy.....- CR -
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