Let’s rate the best seasons of Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the greatest players of all time. Ronaldo’s career has been marked by many achievements, and records, plus, an incredible list of honors.
He has won five Ballon d’Or awards and four European Golden Shoes, making him one of the most decorated European players.
Additionally, he has secured an astonishing 32 trophies, including seven league titles and five UEFA Champions League triumphs.
In fact, he holds records for goals, appearances of being the only player to score in five FIFA World Cup tournaments. However, if I’m to rate Cristiano Ronaldo’s best season then I will surely go with them;
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Top 6 Cristiano Ronaldo Best Seasons
- 2013–2015 Season
- 2017–2018 Season
- 2015–2017 Season
- 2008–2009 Season
- 2007–2008 Season
- 2003–2007 Season
Key Points:
- 2013-2015 Season: Ronaldo won his first Ballon d’Or, helped Real Madrid win La Décima ( 10 European Cup), and scored a record 17 goals in the Champions League.
- 2017-2018 Season: Ronaldo won his fifth Ballon d’Or, scored a sensational bicycle kick goal in the Champions League, and became the first player to score in all six group stage matches. He also secured his fifth Champions League title.
- 2015-2017 Season: Ronaldo became Real Madrid’s all-time top scorer, won the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award, and scored his 500th club career goal. He became the first player to reach 100 goals in the UEFA club competition and won his fourth Champions League title.
- 2008-2009 Season: Ronaldo won the FIFA Club World Cup, Ballon d’Or, and FIFA World Player of the Year award. He also received the inaugural FIFA Puskás Award for his stunning goal and won three successive league titles with Manchester United.
- 2007-2008 Season: Ronaldo won the Premier League Golden Boot and European Golden Shoe, helped Manchester United reach the Champions League final, and was named the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year.
- 2003-2007 Season: Ronaldo made his debut for Manchester United, won his first trophy (FA Cup), and had a breakthrough year, surpassing the 20-goal mark and winning his first Premier League title.
Let’s get started.
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1. 2013–2015 Season
In the 2013-2014 season, Ronaldo became the highest-paid player in football at that time after he signed a new contract. He was superb as formed an attacking trio with Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema, known as “BBC.”
However, Ronaldo won the FIFA Ballon d’Or for the first time in his career and helped Madrid win La Décima, their tenth European Cup. Plus, he scored a record 17 goals in the Champions League that season.
During the 2014-2015 season, Ronaldo set a personal best by scoring 61 goals in all competitions. He had a strong start to the league campaign, scoring 15 goals in the first eight rounds. Also, he reached the milestone of 200 La Liga goals in a record-breaking 178 matches.
He won his third Ballon d’Or and finished as the top scorer in the Champions League for the third consecutive season, tying with Messi and Neymar.
In addition to his fantastic performance, Ronaldo scored five goals in a single game for the first time in his career and surpassed Di Stéfano’s club record for hat-tricks.
Overall, Ronaldo’s time at Real Madrid during these seasons was all about exceptional individual performances, record-breaking achievements, and contributions to the team’s success in domestic and European competitions.
2. 2017–2018 Season
The 2017-2018 season was another great season for Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid. He started the season by scoring in a 3-1 win over Barcelona in the first leg of the Supercopa de España but was sent off and missed the second leg.
However, he was awarded The Best FIFA Men’s Player for the second consecutive year in October. And In December, he became the first player to score in all six Champions League group stage matches and won his fifth Ballon d’Or.
During the Club World Cup final, he scored a free-kick winner as Madrid secured their second consecutive title.
He then reached his 300th La Liga goal in his 286th appearance, becoming the fastest player to achieve this feat, and recorded his 50th career hat-trick in a 6-3 victory against Girona.
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In the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, Ronaldo scored a sensational bicycle kick goal against Juventus, earning him widespread acclaim and a standing ovation from the opposing fans.
He scored a crucial injury-time penalty in the second leg, helping Madrid advance to the semi-finals. In the final, Madrid defeated Liverpool 3-1, securing Ronaldo’s fifth Champions League title and making him the first player to achieve this milestone.
In fact, he finished as the tournament’s top scorer for the sixth consecutive season with 15 goals.
3. 2015–2017 Season
In the 2015-2016 season, Cristiano Ronaldo continued to make history at Real Madrid. He became Real Madrid’s all-time top scorer, surpassing Raúl’s record, first in the league and then in all competitions.
And overall for the club, he recorded 230 goals in 203 La Liga games and 324 goals. He also became the all-time top scorer in the Champions League, surpassing Lionel Messi’s previous record of 77 goals.
In short, he achieved several milestones during the season. He scored a hat-trick in the Champions League group stage, setting a record for the most goals scored in the group stage with 11 goals.
Also reached 500 career goals for club and country with two goals against Malmö FF. In La Liga, his four-goal performance against Celta de Vigo took his total to 252 goals, making him the competition’s second-highest scorer behind Messi.
In the Champions League, Ronaldo’s hat trick against VfL Wolfsburg propelled Madrid to the semi-finals. Although he had fitness issues in the final against Atlético Madrid, his penalty kick helped secure Madrid’s 11th victory.
However, Ronaldo ended the season with over 50 goals across all competitions for the sixth consecutive year. And he won the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award for the second time. The following season, Ronaldo missed the first three matches due to a knee injury sustained in the Euro 2016 final.
He scored his 500th club career goal against Club América in the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup and then cut a hat-trick in the final against Kashima Antlers.
Then he won the 2016 Ballon d’Or and The Best FIFA Men’s Player award, due to his success with Portugal in winning Euro 2016. In the 2016-2017 Champions League, Ronaldo made history once again.
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He became the first player to reach 100 goals in UEFA club competition with his goals against Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.
In the same round, he scored his 100th Champions League goal and achieved a ‘perfect’ hat-trick in the second leg against Bayern.
Ronaldo continued his impressive form, scoring another hat-trick against Atlético Madrid in the semi-finals. However, he finished the season as the competition’s top scorer for the fifth time, as well as the first player to score in three finals in the Champions League era.
With 42 goals in all competitions, Ronaldo played a vital role in helping Madrid win their first La Liga title since 2012. In the Champions League final against Juventus, he scored two goals, including his 600th senior career goal.
To crown it, Madrid became the first team to win back-to-back finals in the Champions League era.
4. 2008–2009 Season
In 2008, Ronaldo played a crucial role in helping United win the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan. He provided the crucial assist for the winning goal against Liga de Quito and was awarded the Silver Ball for his outstanding performance.
With his 2008 Ballon d’Or and 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year award, Ronaldo became the first United player since George Best in 1968 to win the Ballon d’Or.
Plus, the first Premier League player to be named FIFA World Player of the Year. In addition, Ronaldo’s stunning 40-yard strike in the second leg against Porto earned him the inaugural FIFA Puskás Award, recognizing the best goal of the year.
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He said; this goal is the best goal I have ever scored. However, United advanced to the Champions League final in Rome, where they suffered a 2-0 defeat to Barcelona, with Ronaldo making little impact in the match.
To cut his United spell short, he won nine trophies, including three successive league titles and a Football League Cup.
In the 2008-2009 campaign, he scored 26 goals in all competitions, 16 goals fewer than the previous season, but in four more appearances. Ronaldo’s final goal for United came on May 10, 2009, with a free kick in the Manchester derby at Old Trafford.
5. 2007–2008 Season
In the 2007-2008 season, Ronaldo recorded notable feats, including his first hat-trick for United in a 6-0 victory over Newcastle United.
He captained the team for the first time and scored both goals in a 2-0 win against Bolton, surpassing George Best’s record for the most goals scored by a midfielder in a single season.
Ronaldo finished the season with 31 league goals, winning the Premier League Golden Boot, and European Golden Shoe, and becoming the first winger to win the award.
In the Champions League knockout stage, Ronaldo played a crucial role, scoring the decisive goal against Lyon and a header in the aggregate win over Roma, helping United reach the final against Chelsea.
Although his opening goal was equalized and his penalty saved in the shoot-out, United was victorious, winning the penalties 6-5. Ronaldo, who was the top scorer in the Champions League was named the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year.
However, Ronaldo scored a total of 42 goals in all competitions during the 2007-2008 season, his most prolific campaign during his time in England.
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6. 2003–2007 Season
This season announced Ronaldo’s quality as a world-class player and showed his immense talent. Cristiano Ronaldo completed his move to Manchester United on 12 August 2003, becoming the first Portuguese player to join the club.
And his debut came as a substitute in a 4-0 Premier League win over Bolton Wanderers, impressing fans and receiving a standing ovation.
He scored his first goal for United with a free-kick against Portsmouth and added three more league goals that season. Ronaldo ended his first season by scoring the opening goal in United’s 3-0 FA Cup Final win over Millwall, winning his first trophy.
During his second season, Ronaldo scored United’s 1,000th Premier League goal but experienced a penalty shoot-out defeat in the FA Cup Final against Arsenal. He also helped United win the Football League Cup, scoring in the final against Wigan Athletic.
In his third season, Ronaldo faced controversy with a UEFA ban and a red card in the Manchester derby. He had conflicts with teammate Ruud van Nistelrooy and publicly requested a transfer following the 2006 FIFA World Cup incident involving Wayne Rooney.
Despite being booed throughout the season, Ronaldo had a breakthrough year, surpassing the 20-goal mark and winning his first Premier League title.
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Conclusion
In this post, I have rated Cristiano Ronaldo’s best seasons based on outstanding individual performances, goals, and contributions to his teams’ success in domestic and European competitions.
He has won many honors, and titles like winning multiple Ballon d’Or awards, securing Champions League titles, and setting goal-scoring records. He is one of the greatest players in football history.
Kenneth is a an avid soccer follower, fan and writer. He is a consistent follower of the sport and is a fan of Chelsea FC.