Cristiano Ronaldo has issued a touching message to Sir Alex Ferguson after his former manager presented him with an award to recognise his recent achievement.
The Manchester United star, who wanted to quit the club in the summer, has spent much of the season on the bench but was introduced early in his side's 2-1 win at Everton eight days ago. Ronaldo scored what would prove to be his team's winner and, in the process, notched the 700th club goal of his career.
Ronaldo becomes the first player in history to complete the feat and his achievement was recognised on Sunday before the clash with Newcastle United. Ferguson, the man who first bought him to Manchester, handed him the award. The Portuguese legend has since posted two pictures of himself and the Scot with the caption "Always good to be with you boss!" on social media.
One snap of the pair was with the award and the other was them sharing an embrace. Ferguson signed Ronaldo in 2003 as a raw teenager and helped him morph into one of the world's best players by the time he left for Real Madrid in 2009 - winning the Ballon d'Or in 2008.
Ferguson played a part in getting Ronaldo back to Old Trafford last summer. Rumours speculated that Manchester City were keen as the forward closed on a Juventus exit, however he ended up back in red and said in an Instagram post "Sir Alex, this one is for you".
Ronaldo has often referred to Ferguson as his footballing father and paid tribute to the way in which he nurtured him when he first came to England. Together the pair won three Premier League titles and the Champions League, but for Ronaldo it is off the pitch actions that left their mark.
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He has previously recalled: “There were so many beautiful moments that we had together. Not just winning things. But in my heart I keep the most difficult things. Probably he doesn't remember, but I will say it because it's a beautiful story. One day, my father was in hospital, and I was so emotional, very low. And I spoke with him and he said: ‘Cristiano, go there for two or three days.’
“We had difficult games [coming up] and I was a key player in that moment. He said: ‘It will be tough because we have difficult games, but I understand your situation and I’ll leave you [out] and you can go and see your father.’ For me, these are the most important things."
