Reblogging myself for a reason:

The media reaction to Cristiano Ronaldo is like a roller-coaster, it’s just ridiculous:

• After the first 2 matches of the EURO, he was bashed as useless non-performer. He didn’t play at his best, yes, but for sure he wasn’t as bad as the media described his performance.
• After the 2 great matches that lead Portugal to the semi-final, suddenly Cristiano was the world-best and hailed in all possible superlatives.
• Now, after the semi-final defeat, Cristiano is the culprit again.
  They say he is a coward because he didn’t take the first penalty.
  They say it was his decision to take the 5th penalty because he wanted to be the big star, scoring the winning penalty. But how could he be a coward then?
  Dear “journalists”: You can’t even decide whether Cristiano is a coward or a show-off. 
• They say, Cristiano blames Bento that he decided to let him shoot the 5th penalty. What? Cristiano only said that Bento asked him if he would agree to take the 5th and he said yes. He didn’t blame anyone for anything.

I can’t even describe my disgust.

All these biased, malicious comments about Cristiano Ronaldo sadden me to a point that I myself feel hurt.
So how will Cristiano feel? Just imagine.
All the pressure, the endless Messi comparisons, the insults, the sheer hate and malevolence.
What did Cristiano do to all these people to deserve such treatment?

ARROGANT they say

Is it really arrogant when a top athlete says he wants to be the best?
Is it arrogant to be good-looking by nature and underline that with clothes and haircuts?
Is it arrogant to have a special free-kick ritual that helps to concentrate and focus? Just remember Nadal’s many rituals.
Is it arrogant to speak his mind and stick to his believes and opinions?

SPOILT they say
Cristiano achieved everything he is and has by his own dedication, effort and hard work.
He was born into a humble family, you could even call them poor.
At the age of 11 he had to leave his beloved parents and 3 siblings and his home island Madeira for the far-away capital.
For a long time he cried every day at the Sporting Lisbon Academy. Yes, he had the chance there to realise his biggest dream to become a professional footballer.
But that meant paying a high prize: separation from his beloved family, loneliness. Cristiano endured it all, focused only on football and his will to succeed.

EGOISTIC they say
Strange that many of his current and former team-mates always point out what a nice, down-to-earth and helpful person Cristiano is.
What a good friend and mate he is.
You could say: His Real Madrid or Portugal NT team-mates don’t want to talk bad about him because they have to work with him every day.
But there is no need for his former colleagues or managers to do so, they could now reveal what an idiot he is. Instead, they only talk in the most positive way about Cristiano.

SELFISH PLAYER they say
In the beginning of his career this might have been partly true. Sometimes he just wanted to shine and impress with his skills.
But already Sir Alex and Mourinho even more, helped him to develop into a true team-player.
And Cristiano himself said that he always tries to improve, on personal and professional level. Which includes team-play.
Just have a look at his assists statistics.
Nowadays he uses his tricks when they help to succeed and not only to impress. So it should be allowed that once in a while he does a fancy move just for pleasure, his and ours.
Cristiano also gives more passes and sometimes even helps in the defence.
Sadly, the media still sell the picture of a selfish individualist.

PLAYBOY they say
Of course Cristiano had his share of affairs and relationships. Normal for a young man! Nothing wrong with that.
But he once jokingly said: If I really had slept with all the women the media mention, I wouldn’t have had time for my football career
In fact, he is above all a family man.
When he earned his first money at Sporting Lisbon, the first thing he did was buying his family a house and make sure that his mother never ever had to work again. She worked as a cook and his father as a kit-man for the local football club. The family never had enough money to afford a big enough house for 2 parents and 4 children.
Cristiano’s father suffered from alcoholism and his son tried everything to get him away from this terrible disease. He payed for the best therapies but it was already too late. When Cristiano was 19, his beloved papá died.
But Cristiano managed to save his brother Hugo from his drug addiction. Here the therapies Cristano organised and payed for his older brother helped.
Cristiano always said, family comes first. Today that includes his son and his girlfriend Irina.

GAY they say
.. using it as an insult.
Well, even if Cristiano was gay, what would be the problem?

CRY BABY they say
What’s wrong with having feelings and showing them?
Cristiano is emotional, hot-blooded and has a great sense of humour.
When he is happy he smiles and laughs.
When he is upset he pouts or has a temper.
When he is sad or disappointed he cries.
Just acting like a human being.
Always very expressive, which some people dislike. I love him for that.

OVERRATED they say
Just have a look at his breath-taking career statistics and shut up!

FLAMBOYANT they say
Cristiano is, but what’s wrong with that?
His unique style of playing is spectacular and a pleasure to watch. A true artist.
When he scores such an incredible amount of goals like that, everything is fine.

DIVER they say
Well, when he was younger, he quite often took a dive on the pitch. But not anymore.
So stop accusing him of things from the past.

VAIN they say
Cristiano often pleases and sometimes amuses us with his fashion sense and ever-changing hair styles.
Why not? He doesn’t harm anybody with that.
And a handsome man is always an eye catcher.
I assume male jealousy here.

STUPID they say
In the many long interviews I saw, he appeared thoughtful, intelligent and witty.
He is smart enough to have adapted quickly to the new challenges in Lisbon, Manchester and Madrid.
Besides his native language Portuguese he speaks fluently English and Spanish and a bit of French.

RESPECT
That the media draw such a distorted picture of Cristiano is their strategy to make profit. The good boy vs. bad boy always sells. Now it’s good Messi vs. bad Cristiano. In former times it was e.g. good Sampras vs. bad Agassi.

I can only pray that the people who know and love Cristiano can give him the strength to deal with all that. Sometimes I am worried he could break down.

Mobbing and harassing nowadays seem to be some kind of fun sport.
In Cristiano’s case every little move he makes, every word he speaks is being scrutinised mercilessly, always with the intention to find something negative.
Systematic bullying in its ultimate form.
It saddens me deeply that so many people buy this media image as the real Cristiano, even Madridistas do.

We don’t know Cristiano personally but what I saw in long interviews or what people who know him say about him, show a normal person.
Friendly, emotional, honest, charming, with a good sense of humour. And with flaws, like all of us. He says his main flaw is stubbornness. Only human, isn’t it?

We all are only human and nobody is perfect. Neither Cristiano nor the “fans” and media people who demand perfection of Cristiano and critisice him for the slightest details, even invent things.

Article 1, paragraph 1 of our German constitution reads:
“Human dignity shall be inviolable.”
This must apply to each and every human being on this planet.
Including Cristiano Ronaldo!