10 Standout Reasons that contributed to Ronaldo’s trophy win

As Cristiano Ronaldo beat Lionel Messi and Frank Ribery to the Ballon d’Or title, we look back at his outstanding 2013.

1. Cristiano Ronaldo scored a whopping 66 goals in 56 games for both Real Madrid and Portugal last year. That’s nearly 1.2 goals per game

2. The Ballon d’Or winner was on the losing side just 6 times in 2013.

3. Ronaldo won 84.8% of his tackles, a huge success rate for an attack-minded player.

4. In 2013, Ronaldo equalled the record set by Pauletta for the highest goal scorer in Portugal’s history, with 47 international goals.

5. In April he set another record, becoming Real Madrid’s first player to score more than 30 goals for 3 consecutive seasons, and it looks like he’s about to extend that record further in 2014.

6. After scoring a double at Elche, Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored against each of the other 19 teams in La Liga, an extremely impressive feat.

7. If you add the number of assists to his goal tally, Ronaldo was significantly involved in 83 goals over the course of the year.

8. Ronaldo is currently the top goal scorer in the Champions League this season, scoring 9 goals in his 5 appearances so far.

9. If Ronaldo is to maintain his current strike rate for Real Madrid, he will overtake their all-time leading goal scorer (Raul) in 2015.

10. Cristiano single-handedly dragged Portugal to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, scoring a hat-trick in the second leg against Sweden to swing the match back in their favour as they looked to be heading for the exit.