3 gift ideas for Cristiano Ronaldo's 31st birthday

To celebrate the 31st birthday of one of football's greatest players ever, here's a look at three thoughtful gifts for the player that has everything off the pitch, but continues to thirst for prizes on it.

La Liga titleSince joining Los Blancos for a then-world-record fee of €96 million in 2009 following a decorated spell at Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo has won one La Liga title, in 2011-12.

During that same spell, Barcelona has lifted the trophy on four occasions and hated city rivals Atletico have equaled Real's output of one. Ronaldo's lot assumed the role of bridesmaid for all four of the Blaugrana titles, finishing second by an average margin of six points - a number which balloons when taking into account the 15-point gap on the last day of the 2012-13 campaign.
Often relegated to second fiddle in the shadow of Lionel Messi and crew's exploits at Camp Nou, a shaky start to the season under Rafa Benitez has seemingly been righted by the appointment of club legend Zinedine Zidane. In four matches since the former French international was hired, Real has outscored opponents 17-2, as Ronaldo et al sit four points adrift of Barcelona despite scoring 10 more goals and boasting a better goal differential.

More talented Portuguese teammatesTwelve years on from a 1-0 finals loss to a staunch defensive-minded Greek side in the Euro 2004 finals in Portugal, Ronaldo has continued to excel for his homeland while surrounded by an underwhelming cast of characters.

Since his debut for Portugal in 2003 as an 18-year-old, Ronaldo has been capped 123 times, while scoring a record 55 international goals in leading the country to three World Cups and three European Championships.
This summer's tournament in France will mark the stately attacker's fourth continental tournament, and the 31-year-old will again find himself alongside second- and third-rate talents. Joining Ronaldo in attack are: Nelson Oliveira and Lucas Joao, who ply their trade in England's second tier with Nottingham Forest and Sheffield Wednesday; Swansea's on-loan striker Eder, who has one goal in 21 caps; and a past-his-prime Hugo Almeida, who can barely get a match at Hannover.
The midfield is slightly more promising, but hardly world-class, highlighted by young talents Ruben Neves, William Carvalho, and Monaco's Bernardo Silva. Sixty-six-time capped Tiago suffered an undisplaced right tibia fracture for Atletico in November and will likely miss the tournament, and Joao Moutinho has never been more mercurial on the pitch.

A back four featuring the likes of Pepe and Jose Fonte is hardly that of a title-threatening side, and there are as many questions about Portugal's shot-stoppers as there are answers.
While countries like France, Germany, and Spain have legitimate championship ambitions, Portugal's chances pale in comparison regardless of Ronaldo's efforts, highlighting the need for better support for one of football's best.

Confirmation that he is the world's most expensive footballerWith an ego that deservedly matches a varied skill set, Ronaldo was reportedly unsettled when Real broke the world-record transfer fee it paid for him when it signed Gareth Bale from Tottenham in 2013.

As the dust surrounding the astonishing transfer settled, word surfaced that Bale's fee was second only to that of his teammate, and all seemed right in Ronaldo's world. Real maintained that the fee for the Welsh international was €91.59 million, a few million euros shy of Ronaldo's €96-million transfer value.
Journo Jonathan Northcraft told the BBC in January that Real Madrid asked him not to mention Bale's transfer fee when he interviewed the Southampton academy product "because Cristiano Ronaldo doesn't like that someone else cost more than him."
That's before news broke in January from the sport's version of WikiLeaks, Football Leaks, suggesting the club hid the actual fee paid for Bale so as not to anger Ronaldo. Football Leaks reports the club sent €100,759,418 million to White Hart Lane for the pacy winger, eclipsing the amount paid for his Portuguese teammate.
For the sake of Ronaldo and his immense self-esteem, Real would do well to fudge the numbers and maintain that its suave merchant of swerve and panache is in fact still the world's most expensive player.