Cristiano Ronaldo vs All Whites: The biggest star to face NZ?

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo attends a training session. Photo / AP

Sunday morning the All Whites will face, in terms of quality, probably the greatest opponent a New Zealand football side has seen in more than three decades.

Welcome in Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro. Unquestionably the best player in the world, his presence has overshadowed everything else at this tournament.

Portugal has attracted huge crowds - all there to see the famous No7 - and the media benches were full to over flowing in Moscow on Wednesday, as the European champions took on the hosts.

That's the Ronaldo effect, and some of his numbers are staggering. More than 100 Champions League goals, and in excess of 400 goals for Real Madrid alone. Add in his feats at Manchester United (84 goals in 196 games) and Ronaldo has found the net more than 600 times for club and country.

And on Sunday he will take the field against the All Whites. New Zealand teams have faced some famous names down the decades, including Ronaldinho, Kaka and Neymar but Ronaldo is arguably the greatest since the 1982 World Cup, which John Adshead's team faced the Selecao with Socrates, Eder, Falcao but especially Zico.

Already a legend in Portugal, Ronaldo's fame reached new heights last year, when he took them to victory in the European Championships.

"That was the most important moment in our sport," said top Portuguese sports journalist Antonio Magalhaes, who has covered Portuguese football since 1983. "The street parties went on for more than two days."

Aside from being a national hero, Ronaldo is seen as an example in the Iberian country.

He grew up on Madeira, an archipelago almost 1000km off the Portuguese coast.

"When he was very young he came to Portugal but it wasn't easy," said Magalhaes. "He was 12 years old, very lonely and living away from home in a shared house. He comes from a poor background and hard work was his only way out. He was always training, always playing...he didn't really have a chance to become a kid."

His work ethic is often overlooked, with Ronaldo's record setting deeds on the field and glamourous life off it. But his drive to succeed, and constantly improve, has kept him ahead of the curve for almost a decade.

He's got pace and is a brilliant striker of the ball, but he has also developed into the greatest aerial threat in world football.

"Since he was a teenager he has always been under pressure to perform," said Magalhaes.
"At Manchester United, for Portugal and for Real Madrid. Every game the expectation is high for him."

It will be on Sunday, but it's a different kind of contest. Portugal have one foot in the semi finals and need only a point to progress as top qualifier in group A.

The All Whites will have a psychological battle to raise their levels for the third time in eight days. Legs will be weary and the 2-1 loss to Mexico was deflating, after New Zealand ended with nothing to show for such an impressive performance.

"It's hard to take," said All Whites midfielder Clayton Lewis. "We know how well we played in that game and how much we wanted to do well. But we have to be up for every match - it doesn't matter what the circumstances are. We lost against Russia but then got up for Mexico, so there is no reason we can't lift again. We will all be ready for it...we will be able to move forward."

- By Michael Burgess in St Petersburg

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