Ronaldinho's Prime Was Unstoppable...

in 2003 Joan leaport upon being elected FC Barcelona president declared his ambition to bring the club to the Forefront of world football he aimed to achieve this by signing one of three Superstar players David Beckham tierry Henry or Ronaldinho while Henry remained with Arsenal and Beckham moved to Real Madrid Barcelona successfully pursued Ronaldinho securing his transfer for $30 million outbidding Manchester United Ronaldinho quickly made an impact scoring his first competitive goal in La Liga against Sevilla in a match that started at 5 minutes past midnight in a memorable moment he received the ball from his

goalkeeper dribbled past two Sevilla players and struck a powerful 30-yard shot that bounced off the crossbar and into the net despite an injury early in the season that saw Barcelona slump to 12th Place Ronaldinho's return was pivotal he scored 15 goals in La Liga helping Barcelona finish second by the end of the 2003-04 season his notable contributions included a scooped pass to Chavi leading to a victory against Real Madrid at the bernabo their first in seven years a match Chavi credits as the beginning of Barcelona's Resurgence in the 2004 2005 season Ronaldinho won his first

league title and was named FIFA World Player of the Year in December 2004 Carles puol Barcelona's Captain praised Ronaldinho saying the greatest compliment I could give him is that he's given Barcelona our spirit back he has made us smile again Ronaldinho's Fame and influence grew marked by his entertaining and effective play in both La Liga and the UEFA Champions League despite being eliminated by Chelsea in the Champions League's first out round Ronaldinho's performance in the second leg was memorable he scored both goals in the 4-2 loss at Stamford Bridge including a spectacular strike from 20

yards out after fainting a shot reflecting on his toe pooke goal Ronaldinho said it's like someone pressed pause and for 3 seconds all the players stopped and I'm the only one that moves Ronaldinho assisted Lionel Messi's first goal for Barcelona with a deaf scooped pass over the albaset defense in 2004 Ronaldinho was notably left out of Brazil's Copa America Squad by coach Carlos Alberto Pereira who chose to rest his star players and field a reserve team however in 2005 Ronaldinho LED Brazil to their second confederations cup title as the team's Captain he played a crucial

role in the tournament scoring a penalty in the semi-final against Germany and being named man of the match in the 4-1 final victory over AR Argentina with three goals in the tournament Ronaldinho tied with quok Blanco as the competition's alltime top scorer each having nine goals despite an offer in 2008 to extend his contract until 2014 which would have netted him $85 million over 9 years Ronaldinho declined instead in September 2005 he signed a 2-year extension with a minimum fee release Clause of $85 million by the end of 2005 Ronaldinho had accumulated numerous personal Awards

he won the inaugural five Pro World Player of the Year in September was included in the 2005 five Pro world yesen and named the 2005 European footballer of the Year Ronaldinho also secured the FIFA World Player of the Year award for the second consecutive time becoming only the third player to win the award more than once joining the ranks of Ronaldo and Zen zidan his dominance in World football was further solidified by winning the prestigious Balon door the only time in his career he achieved this honor in one of the most memorable matches of his

career Ronaldinho scored twice as Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 30-0 at the Santiago bernabo in El Classico his performance was so outstanding that Madrid fans a rare and significant gesture applauded him an honor only previously bestowed upon on Diego Maradona as a Barcelona player at the bernabo Ronaldinho later remarked I will never forget this because it is very rare for any footballer to be applauded in this way by the opposition fans the 20052 2006 season is widely considered one of the best in Ronaldinho's career he played a crucial role in securing Barcelona's first Champions League title

in 14 years after a dominant group stage performance Barcelona faced Chelsea in the round of 16 in the second leg Ronaldinho scored a decisive goal dribbling past three Defenders and beating the goalkeeper to secure Barcelona's progression he continued to shine in the quarterfinals scoring in a 2-n victory over Benfica in the semi-finals against Milan Ronaldinho assisted the only goal of the series scored by Ludovic Julie leading Barcelona to the Champions League final Barcelona triumphed over Arsenal 2-1 clinching the title two weeks before the Champions League final Barcelona won their second consecutive La Liga title with

a onez victory over Sela Deigo marking Ronaldinho's first career double throughout the season Ronaldinho formed a formidable partnership with cameroonian Striker Samuel etoo providing numerous assists his pass to atoo in the Champions League final led to a red card for Arsenal's goalkeeper yens Layman Ronaldinho finished the season with a career best 26 goals including 17 in La Liga and seven in the Champions League he was selected for the UEFA Team of the Year for the third consecutive time and named the 2005 2006 UEFA Club footballer of the Year additionally he was shortlisted for the 2006

Laurus World Sportsman of the year and included in the Fifa World in Ronaldinho's 50th career League goal came in a match against V real followed by a spectacular overhead bicycle kick goal receiving a cross from Chavi Ronaldinho flicked the ball up with his chest and executed a perfect bicycle kick leading Barcelona fans to wave white handkerchiefs in admiration a sign of great respect postmatch ronaldino shared that this was a goal he had dreamed of scoring since childhood heading into the 2006 World Cup Ronaldinho was part of Brazil's famed magic quartet alongside Adriano Ronaldo and Kaka

this lineup was heavily marketed by Nike and was expected to bring the hoga Bonito style of play to the Forefront however the team was criticized for being topheavy and unbalanced despite scoring 10 goals in five games Ronaldinho failed to score and managed only one assist for hilberto in a group stage win over Japan Brazil's campaign ended in disappointment with a 1- nil loss to France in the quarterfinals where they registered only one shot on goal upon their return to Brazil the team faced harsh criticism from fans and the media on July 3rd 2006 2 days

after Brazil's elimination vandals destroyed a 23-ft statue of ronaldino in chapaco the Statue had been erected in 2004 to commemorate his first FIFA World Player of the Year award that same day Ronaldinho along with Adriano returned to Barcelona and hosted a party at his home which continued at a nightclub this angered many Brazilian fans who felt betrayed by the perceived lack of effort from the players during the World Cup the 2006 World Cup is seen as a turning point in Ronald deno's career marking the beginning of his decline from the peak of football his perceived

passivity and lack of aggression during the tournament Drew comparisons unfavorably to Legends like Maradona and P too a 1970 World Cup winner with Brazil remarked in O Tempo that Ronaldinho lacked the aggression that Maradona and P exhibited transforming themselves in adversity and becoming possessed and Furious to overcome challenges in the club World Cup Ronaldinho scored once and assisted twice in Barcelona's four 4-n win over Mexico's Club America on 14th December in Yokohama Japan despite their success Barcelona Was Defeated 1 n by Brazilian Club International in the final Ronaldinho's performance earned him the bronze ball award

for the competition the day after his Club World Cup performance Ronaldinho finished third in the 2016 FIFA World Player of the Year behind Fabio canavaro and zenine zidon defending Champions Barcelona were eliminated from the Champions League at the last 16 stage by Liverpool despite scoring a career best 21 League goals Barcelona lost the title to Real Madrid on a head-to-head record with both teams finishing the season on the same number of points Ronaldinho played his 200th career match for Barcelona in a league game against osasuna however his 20072 2008 campaign was marred by injuries including

a muscle tear in his right leg on three April which prematurely ended his season despite being a model professional and dedicating himself to training during his first three successful Seasons at Barcelona Ronaldinho's partying lifestyle and lack of dedication to training led to a decline in his physical condition many at the club believed he was past his prime Barcelona Club president Joan leaport stated that Ronaldo needed a new challenge and a new club to revive his career Simon basket of Reuters commented in July 2008 that Ronaldinho who had once Enchanted Barcelona with his talent was leaving

a forlorn figure uncertain if his magic had been exhausted or if he simply needed a new challenge in preparation for the 2010 Joan gamper trophy Ronaldinho sent an open letter to the fans and players of Barcelona expressing that his best years had been the five he spent at the catalon club it was a poignant moment for him and he later expressed regret in an interview for leaving without playing long enough with Lionel Messi