Cristiano Ronaldo: "I'll be 100% for the final”

“The Tenth is the trophy that every Madrid fan wants”, the Portuguese pointed out during the UEFA Open Media Day.

Cristiano Ronaldo spoke to various media outlets during the UEFA-organised Open Media Day. Asked about his fitness, he said, "I'll be there on Saturday. I've started getting back into the swing of things. Today I'm not quite at 100% but I will be for the final. This is really important, we work all year to play in finals and win them. We are elite players, we play every week and it is normal that your body cannot take it from time to time".

"It is bad luck that these problems have emerged at the end of the season. Nobody wants to miss a final that we have been looking forward to for years. I want to help Real Madrid win the Cup. I'm confident that I'll be 100% for the final".

The keys to the final

“There's always an unknown quantity in finals, no one knows what will happen. It is a great match. We really want to win but there is no point obsessing over it because that's not a good idea. Both sides want to win and a lot of the match will be decided on the smaller details. The keys are staying focused, calm, trying to score, playing well, enjoying ourselves and not obsessing too much about things”.

How he sees the team

“There's a good feeling, one of optimism. It's just four days away but we're relaxed, training well and fully focussed on doing our best. I'm really happy to be playing in my first Champions League final with Real Madrid. The Tenth is the trophy that every Madridista wants. I joined this club to win titles like this”. 

“My message to the fans is to stay calm; we need their support because the fans win games. We want everyone who travels to Lisbon and the stadium to give us all their support and sing because we feel and need their support. We're going to give it our best shot and try to win”.

The opponents

“Winning is always better emotionally. That's why Atlético are excited and go into the game in high spirits, feeling strong, but a final is a difficult match. They're doing great things; the players are motivated and have done a good job in the Champions League. It's going to be a match that could go either way but I'm certain Real Madrid will win”.

Cristiano Ronaldo: “I've always dreamed of winning the Champions League with Real Madrid”

“We're very close to achieving something special in the history of the club”, stated the striker.

Cristiano Ronaldo spoke of his desire to win the Champions League with the Whites in an official UEFA interview. “I'm very happy to form part of Real Madrid's history. I'm going to try and win as much as possible with this team and I've always dreamed of winning the Champions League with Real Madrid”, explained the Portuguese before the final against Atlético.

It will be your first Champions League final with Real Madrid and you'll be playing Atlético in Lisbon. How are you feeling about it?

It is going to be a very special match, and in my own country too. I'm very happy and excited. We know it's going to be a very tricky match because Atlético are having a great year, they're a very good team with a great coach. But we're going to try and win and play our best. The team is doing well and feeling confident.

Do you remember when you were a boy and you used to watch other teams lift the trophy?

As a kid I remember watching the big finals and seeing the players lift the Champions League trophy. It's a moment that all Madrid fans dream of, the Décima. We're all really excited, so we have to win.

How have you changed since winning the Champions League with Manchester United?

I've changed for the better, or course. I won the Champions league with Manchester United and now this is my fifth season with Real Madrid. I've always dreamed of winning this competition with this club.

It has been twelve years since Real Madrid last won the Champions League, what would winning the Décima mean for the club and for you?

It is a trophy we have spent years trying to win. As a result, from the very first day we arrive at the club we feel a positive kind of pressure geared towards winning the Champions League. This year it feels like we are just one small step away from doing it. Pressure is a part of football and of playing for Real Madrid. We are used to having to win all the time, but it is fine. I like the pressure because it makes me a better player. It is a special kind of adrenalin we feel.

In order to make that final step you will have to beat Atlético Madrid, a team you know well. How can you win against Atlético?

We have to play the same way we have in previous games. We’ve been successful doing that and have beaten huge teams. This will be a difficult challenge. Atlético Madrid is a very compact side and is very strong mentally. It is always difficult to predict who the winner will be in a final. It is a very different kind of match and I think it will be decided on the smallest of details.

How would you evaluate this season in the Champions League?

I think in terms of teamwork Real Madrid has shown itself to be an excellent side and one that deserves to win the trophy. On a personal level, it has gone well for me. I am the top goalscorer in the competition and I’m very happy about that. That wasn’t my aim at the start of the Champions League season, but things have gone well for me. My teammates have helped me a lot, and I’ll be trying to score again in the final.

This year you surpassed Di Stéfano’s scoring record in the European Cup, does that also have special meaning?

I think I am now part of the club’s history, not only for my goals. Obviously beating Di Stéfano’s record is a huge honour. I admire him a lot as a person. I never had the chance to see him play, but I have seen a few videos. Thanks to God, things have gone well for me and I am happy to be part of Real Madrid’s history. I am going to try and win as much as possible with this team, because this is my favourite club.

Cristiano Ronaldo: “I want to score in the Champions League final”

"The 24th of May will be a fantastic night and I hope to win”, stated the Portuguese striker.

At a promotional event at the Santiago Bernabéu with a star host, Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese striker, the face of the new Samsung smartphone, presented the Galaxy 11 campaign and he was also asked about his state of mind in the lead up to the Champions League final: “The 24th of May will be a fantastic night and I hope to win. Atlético is a very good team, the league leader. It's a very tough team and it will be a tough match but I am confident Real Madrid will win”.

“As I have said many times, when we started the Champions League we were taking it step by step and that is how we reached the final. We've beaten some good teams. We're in the final against a great team that deserves to be there. It is no coincidence that they are top of the league; it's going to be difficult".

"Finals are always complicated, it doesn't matter who you are playing. It's always difficult, it's 50-50. Of course we want to win. The fans are excited about the idea of winning this incredible competition and, of course, I am too. But I'm  happy that there are two Spanish teams there, which means the Spanish league is very strong".

Goal-scoring record

"It's a great tally. I'm very proud of it but it's in the past, everyone is focused on the present. The present is good and I'm focusing on new challenges. I want to score in the final. If I don't score then hopefully a teammate will, the scorer is not important. I want more, more, more. It's a fantastic record, but I want to win the Champions League, that is the most important thing".

"We feel great, we feel like we're on form. There have been a few injuries, but that's normal; it happens to every team in Europe and around the world. We have a lot of matches in a season, the players are tired, but that is normal. There is time for everyone to recover for the 24th. We have to prepare well for the final".

Nothing is impossible

“We're in the fight for La Liga, we know it's going to be difficult but nothing is impossible, we're going to keep fighting. We have already won the Copa del Rey and we're in the final of the Champions League. It is a great season personally and for the team. I'm happy; we're fighting for all three competitions”.

On the World Cup

"I've said it many times: Portugal are under no pressure to win the World Cup, which is great for us. The teams with the pressure are Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Germany... We're going to try and enjoy it and take it match by match. Of course we want to win, but we know it's not easy".

1-1: Real Madrid slip up at Valladolid in their fight for the league title

The Whites went ahead with a Ramos wonder strike from a free kick in the 35th minute, but the home side equalised after 85.

The fight for the league title and safety were the protagonists at the José Zorilla. Two conflicting interests and one objetive: a win. Neither side were able attain theirs in a game that started off vibrantly. Real Madrid and Valladolid created danger in the opposition's area, but a lack of accuracy in front of goal meant the scoreline remained at zero in the opening eight minutes. It was then that Cristiano Ronaldo felt a knock and was replaced by Morata.

As the minutes passed, Real Madrid took charge of the game and forced Valladolid back into their area. Di María tried in the 25th minute, but his shot from the edge of the area was deflected. 10 minutes later, The Whites went ahead. A free kick from the edge of the box was put away with authority by Sergio Ramos, who also found the net last time out against Osasuna. It is his fifth goal in the last four games that he has played, and his first from a direct free kick in the league.

The vice captain was once again fundamental and his important goal meant that Madrid went in ahead at the break. Things didn't change much in the second half, and the first shot on target was by Morata in minute number 53. The home side's response came 12 minutes later. Rukavina centred and Javi Guerra fired an overhead kick just wide.

The game was now back and forth, and maybe for this, to ensure that his side had more control of play, Ancelotti decided to bring on Illarra for Isco after 73, and Marcelo took Benzema's place five minutes later. It was not enough. Osorio, in the only shot that the home side had on target all evening, drew them level five minutes from the end. Despite this, Real Madrid tried until the very end, although they were practically down to 10 men given Pepe finished the game injured.

Cristiano Ronaldo vs Valladolid - La Liga - 07/05/2014

2-2: Real Madrid come from behind to earn a point in their bid to win La Liga

A Ramos header and a wonder back heel by Cristiano Ronaldo earns the Whites a draw against a Valencia side that took the lead on two occasions.

Real Madrid managed to earn another point in their bid to win La Liga, although few would have expected anything other than a victory after their promising start to the game. In fact the Whites could have gone ahead as early as the third minute when Cristiano Ronaldo linked up with Bale before firing a shot from the edge of the area. However, Diego Alves was able to prevent it from going in. Benzema also had a good chance in the 7th minute, but his header went agonisingly wide. The Europa League semi-finalists reacted and began testing Diego López's reactions in the 16th minute, when a Feghouli cross was met by Parejo's head only for the Whites' keeper to touch the ball onto the crossbar.

Real Madrid controlled possession and pushed high up the pitch with the ball. Cristiano Ronaldo had another effort, but once again he was denied by Alves, who was excellent during the first half, in which he managed to frustrate the Portuguese in the 26th and 41st minutes respectively. The home side was punished for failing to take its chances in the 44th minute, when a Parejo corner found its way to Mathieu, who headed home from inside the six-yard box. A comeback was needed in the second half. 

Di María came on for Illarra after the break. Ancelotti's gamble up front was seemed to pay off, and Alcácer's header in the 52th minute, which forced the best out of Diego López, was then followed by wave after wave of pressure from the home team. Alves had to work overtime and was at hand to deny Di María, Isco and Cristiano Ronaldo yet again, with the latter trying his luck with a volley. However, the Valencia keeper could do nothing to stop the equaliser in the 59th minute. A Di María corner was met by a rising Cristiano Ronaldo who managed to head the ball across to Ramos - a specialist from dead ball situations - who scored his third goal in his last two games.

Persistent in attack

The Whites' joy was short lived though when, against the run of play, Parejo retook the lead for the visitors in the 65th minute. Now there were only 25 minutes left in which to score two goals. Real Madrid kept applying pressure but Alves wouldn't concede. The Valencia keeper was excellent but in the end was helpless to stop what happened in extra time. Di María crossed the ball in and then a bit of ingenuity conjured up by Cristiano Ronaldo somehow earned the home side a valuable point. With his back to goal, the Portuguese back-heeled the ball into the back of the net in the 92nd minute, a goal which keeps Real Madrid in the La Liga title race.

Cristiano Ronaldo vs Valencia - La Liga - 04/05/2014

Cristiano Ronaldo makes Champions League history

He is the first player to score 16 goals in one edition of the tournament.

Real Madrid spectacularly saw off Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena to seal their spot in the final of the Champions League. Cristiano Ronaldo was the author of his side's two final goals, and made history in becoming the first player to score 16 times in one edition of the European Cup.

In the a Group Phase, Ronaldo scored three times against Galatasaray, three times against Copenhagen and three times against Juventus in the five games he played in total. In the round of 16 against Schalke 04 he scored twice in each leg, whilst he scored once in the one game he played against Dortmund.

Everyone else left behind

With these 16 goals Cristiano Ronaldo, who will have the opportunity to amplify this number in the final, beats the 14 scored by Altafini with Milan in 62/63, van Nistelrooy with Manchester United in 02/03, and Messi with Barcelona in 11/12.

The portuguese striker also scored against Bayern Munich his goal number 51 in the Champions League with Real Madrid during 50 games for the club in the competition. In his five seasons in Real Madrid, this is his campaign with more goals, 16 goals; more than the last two seasons in which he scored 10 (2012/2013) and 12 (2011/12) goals respectively. In the first two seasons since he joined Real Madrid, he scored seven and six goals respectively.