Cristiano Ronaldo in the Headlines at Real Madrid Once Again
Mike Goncalves@MGoncalves10
Correspondent IIISeptember 4, 2012
It seems that Cristiano Ronaldo will always find himself in the spotlight no matter if it's for a good or a bad reason. After having lost the European Player of the Year award last week to Barcelona's Andres Iniesta, the Portuguese international has come under a lot of scrutiny.
While standing up on the podium alongside Iniesta and Lionel Messi, Real Madrid's No. 7 appeared to be uncomfortable and unhappy. Why is it that if Ronaldo doesn't get things his way, he acts like a spoiled child?
It goes without saying that Ronaldo is one of the best players in today's game and many will argue that he is the best. Unfortunately for Real Madrid, along with a high profile player who has always been a fan of the media, comes a player who expects all the attention and the best treatment from his club.
After Madrid's match over the weekend where Ronaldo scored two goals, the Portuguese forward spoke to reporters. (Source: DailyMail)
"I didn't celebrate the goals because I'm a little sad. The people inside the club know why it is. I'm not going to say anything more."
Ronaldo chose not to celebrate his goals which brought attention to the situation. In a very childish and unprofessional manner, CR7 not only put himself in an awkward position, but he now leaves the Real Madrid front office with a number of questions and concerns.
Some say he is upset at his wages and is looking for a new and improved contract, and others would suggest he would like a bigger effort on Madrid's behalf to get him the exposure and publicity he needs to win major personal trophies like the one he lost out on last week.
I'm not exactly sure that Madrid could help Ronaldo on the media side of things considering he always finds a way to get in the news. If only he was more down to earth and less cocky, maybe the world of football would look at him in a different way? Obviously a player's personality shouldn't cast a shadow over what he does on the field, but the fact that he is always compared to Messi doesn't help his case.
The problem may be wages as Ronaldo is only the 10th highest paid player in the world, but Lionel Messi isn't far ahead of him. CR7 currently earns €10 million while Messi is making €10.5 million at Barcelona.
In comparison with the two highest paid football players in the world, Ronaldo is €10 million away from Samuel Eto'o (who earns €20 million with Russian side Anzhi), and he's €4.5 million back from Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who made a move to PSG this summer. Although the difference may seem like a lot, the financial situations of each club are very different; yet players don't really care about that.
Is Ronaldo worthy of being the highest paid football player in the world? According to the numbers he puts up every season you could argue that he is, but clubs can't always give into the pressure put on them by players who put themselves above the club.
As Rooney did with Manchester United, it seems that Ronaldo is attempting to do the same. An attempt to force Madrid to offer him a more lucrative contract might give the Portugal captain a new reason to smile, but will that really fix the issue?
Giving into pressure from one of your players regardless of who it is, sets a standard for anyone else at the club. If Real Madrid is to offer Ronaldo an improved contract and they give in to his childish antics, upcoming stars at the Bernabeu will use this situation as leverage in their advantage.
They will not only prove to Ronaldo that they will give him what he wants, but they will also show that their are circumstances when a player can be put above the interests of the club.
His departure from Real Madrid is very unlikely considering their are only a handful of clubs who could afford him. But, the longer this goes on, the worst it could be for Real Madrid as a club as well as the environment in their locker room.