Cristiano Ronaldo turns 36 years old in February, but the Juventus and Portugal star has absolutely no plans to retire just yet.The legendary forward wants to continue playing until the age of 41, although none of us should take that for granted.We’ll all consider ourselves incredibly fortunate one day - yes, including those who don’t already - that we were around to witness Ronaldo’s extraordinary career first-hand.While 2020 may have been a strange year for everyone, including footballers, Ronaldo was still able to produce a host of memorable moments both on and off the pitch.We’ve looked back through the archives over the past 12 months and ranked his greatest moments of the year.16. Skill on Chris SmallingRonaldo sent Chris Smalling back to Manchester during a clash between Juventus and AS Roma in January.Despite his advancing years, the Portuguese maestro still possesses magic in those boots of his.
15. The highest-earning athlete on Instagram during lockdown
Ronaldo is not exactly short on cash but he still managed to boost his bank balance during the lockdown period.
He pocketed a cool £1.8 million in exchange for just four sponsored posts on his Instagram page.
Lionel Messi was in second place after earning £1.2 million.
14. Returns to the Bernabeu to watch El Clasico
Ronaldo returned to the Bernabeu in March to watch Real Madrid seal a 2-0 victory over fierce rivals Barcelona in El Clasico.
Vinicius Jr broke the deadlock and celebrated with a rendition of Ronaldo’s trademark ’Siiiiu!’ celebration. Things you love to see.
13. Scores screamer for Juventus vs Genoa
You can’t give Cristiano that amount of space, even outside the box. He will punish you.
12. Becomes first Juventus player to score in 10 consecutive games
In February, Ronaldo broke a record set by David Trezeguet when he scored for the 10th consecutive match against Hellas Verona.
The man’s a pure goal machine.
11. Becomes the first footballer in history to earn $1 billion
Ronaldo became the first billionaire footballer in June, according to a report released by Forbes.
Only two other athletes hit the mark while still active: Tiger Woods in 2009 and Floyd Mayweather in 2017.
10. Sets a new hat-trick record
Back in January, Ronaldo became the first player in history to score hat-tricks in 10 different competitions when he netted a treble with Juve in a 4-0 win over Cagliari.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has scored hat-tricks in the following tournaments:
Serie A
Premier League
La Liga
Champions League
Copa del Rey
Club World Cup
World Cup
World Cup qualifiers
Euro qualifiers
UEFA Nations League
9. Scores incredible hang-time header vs Roma
Ronaldo is such a remarkable athlete that he can out-jump defenders 10-15 years younger than himself.
His ability to hang in the air is still unrivalled.
8. Breaks Juventus record with yet another Champions League goal
Juve may have crashed out of last season’s Champions League in the Round of 16, but that wasn’t Ronaldo’s fault.
The veteran forward was the standout performer in the second leg against Lyon, scoring both goals, including a thunderbolt from range.
That beauty was Ronaldo’s 37th goal of the season which broke an all-time Juve record for most goals in a single campaign.
7. Pele describes him as better than Messi
"Today the best player in the world is Cristiano Ronaldo," Pele told YouTube channel Pilhado. "I think he's the best, because he's more consistent, but you can't forget about Messi, of course, but he's not a striker."
There’s no doubt that Pele’s words would have meant an awful lot to Ronaldo.
6. Ends three-year drought without scoring a free-kick in club football
Cristiano is widely regarded as one of the world’s best free-kick takers but he went almost three years (December 2017-July 2020) without scoring a set-piece in club football before finally ending his doubt against Torino.
It was an absolute beauty, too. You don’t save those!
5. Collects his Serie A winners’ medal
Ronaldo and his teammates celebrated winning the 2019-20 Serie A title back in August.
The team’s star man certainly enjoyed the occasion…
4. Scores within three minutes after overcoming Covid-19
Ronaldo tested positive for coronavirus on several occasions over the autumn but made his long-awaited return to action against Spezia and scored within three minutes after coming off the bench.
3. Wins the Golden Foot award
The Golden Foot award has been won by the likes of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the past. Cristiano Ronaldo became the latest in a long line of legends to seal the individual accolade earlier this month.
Messi, however, is still yet to land his hands on the award.
2. Scores his 100th international goal
In September Cristiano became only the second-ever male player to score 100 goals for his national team, following in the footsteps of Iran’s Ali Daei.
He reached his century with a special free-kick against Sweden in the Nations League.
What a way to score your 100th international goal. It surely won’t be too much longer before he surpasses Daei’s record.
1. Gets the better of Messi and Barcelona at Camp Nou
But surely the best moment of 2020 for Ronaldo was getting the better of both Barcelona and Messi at Camp Nou earlier this month.
The former Real Madrid star returned to haunt Barça, who slumped to a 3-0 defeat in their own back-yard.
Ronaldo scored two of Juve’s goals, both from the penalty spot, and his employers reacted by declaring him as the GOAT on social media.