of a fantastic era," he said. "I'm lucky to be part of United's history. It's one of the most important moments of my life, I hope to be back in this position again."

While Ronaldo did not dominate on the field in 2008/09 to the same degree as he did in 2007/08, he still played a significant role as the Reds achieved a hat-trick of league titles and reached a second successive European Cup final. For example, Cristiano scored in all three knock-out rounds of the Champions League, including the club's Goal of the Season to defeat Porto in the quarter-final second leg in his native Portugal and a double in

the semi-final second leg against Arsenal.

In his final appearance at Old Trafford, Ronaldo received his third championship medal after the Reds sealed the title with a point against Arsenal. There was no indication then that Cristiano was contemplating an exit - but that all changed on 11 June 2009 when United announced he had "expressed his desire to leave" and that Real Madrid's world record £80m offer had been accepted. Less than three weeks later, the transfer was concluded.