Ronaldo reaches 300 United appearances
Cristiano Ronaldo makes his 300th appearance for Manchester United tonight, 14 years to the day since he hit the 200 mark in a red shirt.
The Portuguese forward started for the Reds against Atalanta in this evening's Champions League clash at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo is the 60th player in United history to hit the landmark of 300 appearances.
His first was way back in August 2003, a scintillating tease of his talent as a substitute in a 4-0 win against Bolton Wanderers.
United had led by just the one goal when Ronaldo, signed for £12.5 million only a few days before from Sporting, arrived on the pitch after 61 minutes. With no. 7 on his back, taking it from the recently departed David Beckham, the excitement was palpable, and any expectations were soon exceeded too.
Ronaldo won a penalty and entertained a mesmerised crowd with stepovers galore. “Undoubtedly the most exciting debut performance I’ve ever seen," was the verdict of George Best.
18 years on, it's 300 up for Cristiano. Here's how he's got to the landmark...
OTHER RONALDO APPEARANCE LANDMARKS
50th appearance
16 October 2004, 0-0 draw vs Birmingham City (A)
100th appearance
15 October 2005, 3-1 win vs Sunderland (H)
150th appearance
7 November 2006, 1-0 loss vs Southend United (A)
200th appearance
20 October 2007, 4-1 win vs Aston Villa (A)
250th appearance
1 November 2008, 4-3 win vs Hull City (H)
And here's a breakdown of Ronaldo's 300 United appearances...
BY COMPETITION
201: Premier League
58: Champions League (including qualifying)
26: FA Cup
12: League Cup
2: Club World Cup
1: Community Shield
STADIUMS PLAYED AT
145: Old Trafford
9: Villa Park
6: Ewood Park, White Hart Lake, Goodison Park, St. James' Park
MOST FREQUENT OPPOSITION
15: Aston Villa, Arsenal, Chelsea
14: Middlesbrough, Tottenham Hotspur
13: Fulham, Everton
MOST GOALS AGAINST
9: Aston Villa
8: Newcastle United
7: Wigan Athletic, Fulham
MOST FREQUENT OPPOSITION MANAGERS
15: Arsene Wenger
14: Harry Redknapp
13: David Moyes
12: Jose Mourinho
11: Steve Bruce
10: Mark Hughes
BIGGEST WINS INVOLVED IN
7-1 vs Roma - 10 April 2007
6-0 vs Newcastle United - 12 January 2008
BY UNITED MANAGER
292: Sir Alex Ferguson
8: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer