A Dive from Grace

In the Santiago Bernabeu there was a real sense of hope and celebration as fans eagerly awaits the official introduction of their newest ‘Galacticos’. The sound in the stadium was deafening; the incessant drumming, the blaring of horns and the passionate singing of pro-Madrid songs gave the stadium a real carnival atmosphere.

A young fan draped head to toe in Real Madrid gear excitedly exclaimed ‘An angel from heaven is coming to the Bernabeu tonight!’ before kissing a picture of the Patron Saint of Madrid San Isidro.

Suddenly all music and partying stopped as the PA announcer plays the Real Madrid club anthem. The moment has finally arrived; everyone in the stadium held their breath as club president Florentino Perez saunters to the stage on the centre of the pitch. He had a speech prepared which seemed to last a lifetime. But before all hell broke loose amongst the restless crowd ‘El Presidente’ uttered the words all Real fans were dying to hear “It is my pleasure to introduce to you CRISTIANO RONALDO!!!!”

Up until this point Madrid had spent in excess of €150 million on footballing superstars in the form of Kaka, Karim Benzema, Raul Albiol and Xabi Alonso but as the young fan had said this “Angel” was the biggest of them all and the 80000 Madridistas present was a testament to that.

Wearing the crisp white playing strip of Los Merengues Cristiano Ronaldo emerged from the players’ tunnel to rapturous applause. The crowd in unison broke into song lauding his name, cameras from all corners were flashing violently and teenage girls were sent into frenzy as Ronaldo’s pearly whites were shown on the big screen. At that moment Cristiano couldn’t imagine a more glorious moment than the one he was experiencing on that warm summer night; little did he know this was as good as it would get for him.

Today Cristiano Ronaldo is a lowly paid farm labourer in his hometown of Madeira. So how did this once indomitable force in world football find himself in such humble surroundings?

It was not so long ago where Cristiano Ronaldo had the footballing world at his feet. He had impeccable ball control, struck the ball with pinpoint accuracy and his dribbling skill would mesmerize the best defenders. It was at Manchester United where he made a name for himself. Under the tutelage of Sir Alex Ferguson Cristiano Ronaldo spearheaded one of the most successful squad in United’s history winning three consecutive Premier League titles and a European Champions League. So it was inevitable rival clubs would start vying for his services.

Eventually it was Real Madrid which was able to pries Ronaldo away from Old Trafford. Led by the club’s ambitious president Florentino Perez, Madrid offered Manchester United £80 million for Cristiano’s services, a financial package that was too irresistible to turn down.

The move to Real Madrid as Ronaldo put it was ‘Fulfilling a Childhood Dream’. However as a child he never imagined the riches that were to be offered to him; a six year contract with a starting salary of £183,000 a week in his first season rising to a staggering £556,000 a week in his final season.

With all the money and adulation being showered on him it was only a matter of time for temptation to follow. And temptations do not come any greater than in the bright lights of Madrid. Ronaldo jokingly pointed out as he went about harvesting this season’s stock, “Bringing me to Madrid was like putting a child in a candy store, in Manchester I was on a constant diet of pasty dowdy looking English broads and in Madrid I find myself knee deep in Mediterranean beauties! C’mon I was 24 what was I suppose to do?!” It was not long before alarm bells began to ring at Real Madrid. Cristiano would often stagger into training not over the effects from the night before and his performance on the pitch suffered.

Madrid fans are notoriously critical of underperforming players and they did not take too kindly to Ronaldo’s blasé attitude. It was against Real’s eternal enemy Barcelona when Madrid fans turned on Ronaldo. Like many “El Grand Clasico” in the past, this one was a riveting contest. With less than 5 minutes to go the match was evenly poised at 1-1, Barcelona had possession just a few yards from Real’s penalty box but a minor slip by Leonel Messi gave possession away to Real’s Xabi Alonso, from the ensuing possession Alonso sparked a ferocious counter-attack; his pinpoint pass sent Ronaldo rampaging down the left flank but instead of passing the ball to a wide open Kaka Ronaldo decided to take on the two defenders, his step-overs was clumsily executed and the Barca defense dealt with it easily. Unconcerned with Barcelona launching their own counter-attack Cristiano continued whining and pouting at the assistant referee for not awarding a free kick. However unlike Real Madrid, Barcelona’s Thierry Henry was able to blast the winner into the back of the net.

Incensed at Ronaldo’s absence in defense his teammates berated Ronaldo for everyone in the Bernabeu to see. Reacting to the players’ anger fans also started hurling abuse at Ronaldo. The newspapers had a field-day creating headlines like Ronal ‘Dope!’ and ‘What’s RON with you?’ Ronaldo’s Madrid dream was quickly turning into a nightmare, Ronaldo recalled, “The fans’ hostility was relentless, strangers would insult me on the streets and people would throw objects at me during games; I had a pigs head thrown at me once!” However nothing bothered him more than the strained relationship he had with his teammates, “I tried everything to redeem myself since the Barcelona game but my teammates had already made up their mind about me.” Without the support of the fans and his teammates Madrid became a very lonely place to live. “I was depressed and desperate to find a place where I would be accepted and loved.” Flushed with cash Ronaldo resorted back to his old partying habits.

By spending more time on the Madrid social circuit Ronaldo found himself mingling with some very shady characters. Ronaldo admits that most parties he attended had drugs readily available but he vehemently denies ever knowingly taking any illicit drugs. Nonetheless it was on a gloomy winters day when his world came crashing down. Ronaldo was summoned to Florentino Perez’s office; being summoned to the President’s office was never good, Ronaldo thought he was just going to get another stern lecture for the latest batch of intoxicated photos of him. As he entered Perez’s office he sees President seated behind his imposing mahogany desk. Perez never one to mince his word informed Ronaldo, “Ronnie, you have tested positive for cocaine, you have tainted this great club too many times, this is the final straw, You’re FIRED! Now get out of my office!”

The ensuing weeks saw Ronaldo banned from the game for 5 years, he had all his multi-million dollar endorsement deals terminated and experienced a public backlash not seen since George W Bush was in office. Little did he know his legal woes was only just beginning, Florentino Perez ever the astute businessman was intent on recouping the ₤80 million spent on acquiring Ronaldo. Perez successfully sued Ronaldo for breach of contract; the courts found Ronaldo liable for the transfer fee Real Madrid had to write off when they terminated his contract. Financially ruined Ronaldo filed for bankruptcy and returned back to his family home in Madeira.

Back at Ronaldo’s modest villa, I sit in the dining room with Ronaldo and his two sons as his wife prepares supper. Ronaldo gave a very philosophical response to everything that has happened in past, “I believe everything happens for a reason” he says, “I still believe an injustice was carried out against me, but without this ban and my financial woes I would not have returned to Madeira, I would not have met my loving wife Maria and be a father to two beautiful sons.”

Four years into his five year ban I ask whether he missed playing football. His reply was an emphatic YES! He mentioned that in his spare time he would go to the town’s local football club and coach the youngsters for a few hours. As we strolled around town I asked whether he may consider playing when his ban expires, at that moment a football from a nearby pickup game rolled towards us, he performed a spectacular juggling act before kicking the ball back, turned to me with a cheeky grin and replied “We’ll see”.

The sparkle in his eyes was back.