Not gonna lie, it's popular to shit on him these days. And this is also the perfect forum for that
To be fair, I was also one of these fans if we talk 8-10 years ago. I remember all the derbies in the early 2010s and this huge club/player rivalry(Madrid vs Barca, Ronaldo vs Messi)aswell as all the internet drama and the fans being toxic on both sides. Every match against Madrid was long-awaited and tense. Good times, had some good experiences to be honest. As the years went by I started to respect Cristiano more, and started to consider him as an all-time great, even though the poacher style that won Madrid so many knockout games wasn't my cup of tea. Guess that I've been spoiled too much with Guardiola's Barca. Whatever we say about this guy, he was clutch as hell. Probably the best in that category?
However, I was clearly aware of his persona since his first United spell. He's the most narcissist player of all time. Just plain egocentric. Even though he tried to cover that sometimes, it all seemed like a show to me
Guess that's one of the reasons why many fans/sport pundits also liked Messi more. But if you look at Ronaldo's past and childhood and where he is now, it's something to admire. Plus his work ethic and staying in good shape so many years. Messi is no saint either, but whatever thoughts he might have in his mind, or whatever he speaks in private, he was never bragging in public. Ronaldo was just in YOUR face with that, and it got annoying after a while. In the last 2 years it's been shown that age catches up to anybody, and we can see in his performances. What's worse for him, instead of accepting that he's not on the level that he was 5 years ago, he goes out in public and does a controversial interview mid-season while his club is struggling... As much as I try to be more neutral/appreciative towards him, it's becoming harder because he just keeps stepping into shit.