Cristiano Ronaldo received a timely tonic on Sunday
evening when he was confirmed as PFA Player of the Year for the
second successive season.
After a week in which he missed a penalty in
Barcelona and suffered defeat at Chelsea, the award reminds us
how rare these occasional lows are in
Cristiano's high-flying career.
Ronaldo's fellow professionals voted him the top performer in
English football, ahead of Liverpool duo Fernando Torres and Steven
Gerrard, Arsenal pair Cesc Fabregas and Emmanuel Adebayor and
Portsmouth goalkeeper David James. All six were shortlisted for the
award but few people gave the other five a prayer of pipping the
Portuguese ace.
Cristiano was again nominated for the PFA Young Player of the Year
- which he also won in 2007 - but this time the gong went to
Fabregas of Arsenal. The awards were presented at London's
Grosvenor House Hotel but Ronaldo did not attend, given the
Champions League semi-final second leg against Barcelona is just
two days away.
In a pre-recorded acceptance speech, Ronaldo said:
"I feel very happy. When you work all season to do something for
the team, and then at the end the PFA give you this award, it is a
great moment.
"It is an honour, a pleasure and a great motivation to carry on,
to work more and get better.
This is a good moment for me but it is not just my award, my
team-mates have helped me a lot this season. They give me good
passes to score goals - and I score.''
Cristiano's remarkable tally of 38 goals so far this season include
his first hat-trick for United - against Newcastle in January - and
a run of eight strikes in seven consecutive games from 15
March to 13 April. The winger has also set up numerous goals for
his team-mates as the Reds close in on a possible Premier League
and Champions League double.
Ronaldo is only the second player to win the PFA award in two
successive years since its inception in 1974. Ironically, he'll
come face to face with the first man to do it on Tuesday when
Thierry Henry (2003, 2004, then of Arsenal) lines up for
Barcelona.
Cristiano wasn't the only Red to be heralded at the PFA awards -
Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic were also named in the
Premier League Team of the Year:
David James (Portsmouth); Bacary Sagna (Arsenal),
Ferdinand, Vidic, Gael Clichy (Arsenal);
Ronaldo, Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Cesc Fabregas
(Arsenal), Ashley Young (Aston Villa); Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal),
Fernando Torres (Liverpool).