Cristiano Ronaldo has an outrageous array of weapons in his armoury. 

His ability to score any type of goal, dazzle opponents with his fleet-footed style of dribbling and phenomenal commitment to improving his athleticism have made him one of the greatest players in the history of the game. 

Alongside Lionel Messi he can be considered one of football's true extraterrestrials.

While Messi's otherworldly talent was incredibly obvious from an early age, Ronaldo's potential manifested slowly during his six-year stint at Manchester United. 

It was clear that the Portuguese wizard would grow into a top tier talent, but few could have predicted the impact he has gone on to make. 

As time went on Ronaldo grew in confidence, stamped out the petulance of his formative years and improved every aspect of his technical, mental and physical repertoire. 

By the year 2008, his former Manchester United teammate Louis Saha had realised he was playing on a different planet to mere mortals. 

Saha played 94 matches alongside Ronaldo for the Red Devils, combining to goal scoring effect on eight occasions. 

And while speaking to talkSPORT recently, the former centre-forward recalled a special moment from Ronaldo that confirmed his status as an 'extraterrestrial' talent. 

“The moment when I thought he was extraterrestrial was the goal against Roma away from home in the Champions League,” he said.

“The ball went wide and he bombarded forward and the strength that he actually generated into that action, because he came maybe 20 metres late into the box and he jumped way higher than anybody, and now he’s doing this every week.

“I didn’t know the guy had that in him. I knew he had skills and talent but I had no idea he could score those kind of goals.

“It was powerful, courageous and he didn’t care about getting hurt. That was when I thought: ‘Hang on a minute, this guy is an animal’.”

You can see a clip of the goal below: 

Ronaldo's extraordinary ability to levitate in mid-air before heading the ball has become a trademark feature of his game, and the header against Roma provided a prescient indication of what was to come. 

The athleticism he showed to sprint into the box, arriving from well out of camera shot to meet Paul Scholes' delivery, as well as the bravery he showed to attack the ball at full pelt, are two traits that have enabled him to reach demi-god status.

We've seen many similar feats of physical excellence during his stints with United, Real Madrid and Juventus as well as with the Portugal national team.

This particular strike, however, is up there with the very best headers in Ronaldo's career.