Ronaldo inscribed his name into football's history books on Tuesday by scoring a record-breaking 15th FIFA World Cup goal to take him clear of
Gerd Muller as the tournament's all-time top marksman.
The strike set Brazil on the road to the quarter-finals with a 3-0 win over Ghana, and it came eight years and 11 days on from O Fenômeno's first in this great competition, which by coincidence also came in a 3-0 win over African opposition.
Afterwards, he reflected on the achievement: "How do I make history? It's tough, difficult, it's not easy. You need a lot of sacrifice and a lot of work. This is the product of many, many years of effort."
There was, though, no suggestion that it would satiate the thirst of a player not yet satisfied with his extensive list of achievements. "What do I want from now on?" he said. "More, more and more. I want to keep scoring, as I still have much left to give."
Here,we looks back on the fantastic 15 that have cemented Ronaldo's status as one of the game's all-time greats.
Goal 15, 27 June 2006, Brazil 3-0 Ghana:One goal, 5 minutes
The goal that broke Muller's record from the 1970 and 1974 tournaments was classic Ronaldo. Timing his run to perfection to spring the Ghanaian offside trap, he raced onto a sublime through-ball from Kaka and, faced with a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, provided the inevitable conclusion.
Cool, calm and collected, he left Richard Kingson sprawling with a clever shimmy, dragged the ball round the keeper and, with a defender rapidly closing in, flicked out his right boot to send the ball home. History was thus made.
Goals 13 and 14, 22 June 2006, Japan 1-4 Brazil: Two goals, 46 and 81 mins
Ronaldo's first goal at Germany 2006 boosted his waning confidence and silenced the critics who had poured scorn on his apparent lack of pace and co-ordination. Although crucial to both Ronaldo and Brazil, the finish itself was more straightforward than spectacular, with Ronaldo glancing in a header to level the score at 1-1 just before half-time.
The striker’s inspired second goal sealed Brazil's emphatic victory. Collecting the ball with his back to the goal outside the area, he turned and found the net with laser-like precision, leaving goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi sprawled helplessly across the turf. With these two goals, Ronaldo equalled Muller's record of 14 FIFA World Cup goals.
Goals 11 and 12, 30 June 2002, Germany 0-2 Brazil: Two goals, 67 and 79 minsIn the Final of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, Ronaldo scored the two most important goals of his career to secure for Brazil a record fifth world title. For the first, he won the ball on the edge of the area before laying it off for Rivaldo to unleash a powerful shot. The ball rebounded off goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, leaving Ronaldo to tap it into the net and give his country the lead.
The second goal saw Kleberson surge down the right wing before finding Rivaldo on the edge of the box, who dummied cleverly and let the ball run into the path of Ronaldo. From the edge of the area, the tournament's top scorer made no mistake, finding the bottom left-hand corner with a low-struck shot.
Goal 10, 26 June 2002, Brazil 1-0 Turkey: One goal, 49 minsA goal of quality and skill in the semi-final: Ronaldo entered the area on the left-hand side and beat two defenders before flicking the ball past goalkeeper Rustu Recber.
Goal 9, 17 June 2002, Brazil 2-0 Belgium: One goal, 87 minsRonaldo's goal brought relief to Brazil after a tough match against a dangerous Belgium side in Kobe. Kleberson broke free on the right and delivered a cross to Ronaldo who had the time and space needed to pick his spot and wrap up the win for Brazil.
Goals 7 and 8, 13 June 2002, Costa Rica 2-5 Brazil: Two goals, 10 and 13 minsEarly in the first half, Ronaldo struck the first of two goals after connecting with a cross from Edilson. The second goal came from a corner and saw Ronaldo pick up the ball in the area, shake off his marker and hit a weak but well-placed shot between the keeper and the near-post.
Goal 6, 8 June 2002, Brazil 4-0 China: One goal 55 mins After a powerful run down the right wing that left two men in his wake, Cafu picked out Ronaldo, who comfortably steered the ball past goalkeeper Jiang Jin for his sixth FIFA World Cup goal and Brazil’s fourth of the match.
Goal 5, 3 June 2002, Brazil 2-1 Turkey: One goal, 50 minutesBefore this match, many doubted whether Ronaldo could light up another the FIFA World Cup, with the striker only recently recovered from a series of career-threatening knee injuries that had plagued him for much of the preceding two years. Five minutes into the second half, however, and just three minutes after Brazil had fallen behind, Ronaldo made his mark, stretching to get his foot to a Rivaldo cross and steer the ball into the net.
Goal 4, 7 July 1998, Brazil 1-1 Netherlands (4-2 PSO): One goal, 46 minsThe fourth and last of Ronaldo's goals at France 98 closely resembled the others he had scored at the tournament. In the semi-final against Netherlands, Ronaldo beat Frank de Boer and slid the ball under goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, who was racing out to close off the angle.
Goals 2 and 3, 27 June 1998, Brazil 4-1 Chile: Two goals, 45 and 70 minsRonaldo's second FIFA World Cup goal came from a penalty on the stroke of half-time in Brazil's Round of 16 tie against Chile – their third of the game. His side's fourth and final goal also came from Ronaldo, who picked up the ball in space and showed a remarkable burst of speed to beat goalkeeper Nelson Tapia.
Goal 1, 16 June 1998, Brazil 3-0 Morocco: One goal, 9 minsAn unused squad member at USA 94, Ronaldo had to wait until the second match of his second FIFA World Cup before finally opening his account, the bustling centre-forward putting his country in front with a well-struck volley at the start of group match against Morocco
