Is Cristiano Ronaldo A Flop In The Big Matches?

Once again Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo went missing as Jose Mourinho’s men were beaten 3-1 by Barcelona in the El Clasico begging the question can he perform in big matches?

For many onlookers Barcelona’s 3-1 win over Real Madrid in Saturday’s El Clasico brought up many talking points typical of such a titanic European clash.
We all knew that Lionel Messi is a better team player than Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Saturday only served to reinforce just why ‘The Flea’ is going to win the 2011 FIFA Ballon d’Or.
Likewise, Barcelona showed the entire continent why they are not quite ready to forfeit their Spanish (and European) crown just yet – if that was ever in doubt.
However, the biggest thing to emerge was that never-ending question on the lips of every Madrid, Barca, Manchester United and Portugal fan – indeed, everybody with an in-depth liking of the beautiful game; can Cristiano Ronaldo perform in the big games? Is Ronaldo a big match choker? And finally, is the pressure of high-profile matches too much for the world’s most expensive ever player?
Here are some reasons to suggest so…
Real Madrid 0-2 Barcelona, Champions League Semi-Final 1st Leg 2011
The biggest El Clasico of the decade took place at the Santiago Bernabeu in May of this year with a place in the 2011 UEFA Champions League final against an average-looking Manchester United side at stake.
Everybody knew that the Sir Alex Ferguson’s team were cannon fodder for the eventual winners of the Real-Barca clash, dubbed ‘Ronaldo vs Messi Part 4’.

Part 1 went to Messi (Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid), part 2 went to Messi (Real Madrid 1-1 Barcelona), part 3 went to Ronaldo (Copa Del Rey Final).
But part 4 was a resounding Messi win as the Argentine ace scored twice – the second being a Maradona-like run to grab Barca’s second an all but seal the tie.
As the Barca ace scored the goal of the season, a frustrated Cristiano Ronaldo watched on in a huff, poor performance and all!
Cristiano Ronaldo During World Cup 2010
The World Cup is the biggest stage of all for any footballer, not least Cristiano Ronaldo whose megastar status preluded him prior to the tournament’s opener.
Alas, an average performance in the group stages (against Ivory Coast and Brazil – North Korea is non-applicable) followed by a shocker against Spain in the last 16 saw Ronaldo and co. on an early plane home.

Just like in Euro 2008 four years earlier the world’s most expensive player ever had flopped at a big tournament.

The scene of the tanned winger spitting before cameras at the final whistle before blasting coach Carlos Queiroz for “negative tactics” did little to change the minds of onlookers.

Barcelona 2-0 Manchester United, Champions League Final 2009
In a match most pundits deemed ‘too tough to call’, Manchester United were put down like a stray dog by a superb Barcelona side who proved too good for the Premier League champions.

Whereas Lionel Messi played as a team, for his team and with his team, an extremely selfish Cristiano Ronaldo tried to win the final all on his own and flopped miserably as Pep Guardiola’s men ran riot.
Chelsea 1-1 Manchester United, (4-5 pens) Champions League Final 2008
A rather more debatable match in which Cristiano Ronaldo’s big-match aptitude was once called into question was the 2008 UEFA Champions League final against Chelsea.
Yes, he did score the opener in the all-English final in Russia’s capital, but ‘CR7′s’ wholesome performance was average at best – epitomized by his stuttering penalty miss during the shoot-out.
Luckily for the Portuguese winger Manchester United won thus largely masking over his forgettable showing.
Portugal 0-1 Greece, Euro 2004 Final
Throughout the entire Euro 2004 tournament, Cristiano Ronaldo was riding on a wave of Portuguese momentum as his goals coupled with some awesome performances helped guide the nation to their first ever European Cup final.
So when a hopeful nation begged ‘Ronnie’ for ‘one more performance’ against a horribly defensive Greek side lacking any semblance of creativity, they were left wanting as Portugal and Ronaldo choked in a poor final.
The tears soon flowed as Phil Scolari’s men spurned a glorious chance to bag thier first ever European title on home soil as well.
Admittedly, Ronaldo has been the spearhead to some stellar performances in certain games for Manchester United, Real Madrid and Portugal down the years.
In short, the 2008 World Player of The Year destroyed Arsenal in the 2008 Champions League semi-final, he ripped Millwall apart in the 2004 FA Cup final and of course has scored against the likes of AC Milan, Liverpool, the Netherlands, England, Manchester City and Inter Milan to boot.
The problem is but the magnitude of those games do not quite match up to the aforementioned games so when contextualized the latter seem to preponderate.
So judge for yourselves. Is Cristiano Ronaldo a big game choker or not? Have your say with In The Stands below…