Cristiano Ronaldo’s fading greatness takes center stage in Manchester United’s Champions League exit

The biggest game of the season, of course Cristiano Ronaldo was going to make history in it. The first time in more than a decade where he has played 90 minutes of Champions League football and not registered a shot. The first time in more than a decade that he will end a season without a club trophy. Yet more landmarks for that historical resume.

It will take the distant perspective of history to confidently place Ronaldo in his appropriate place among the pantheon of footballing greats, but tonight it felt like most of the key facets of his resume have been decided. Yes the volume of goals will swell and there may yet be a few more games when he rolls back the years, just as he did against Tottenham on Saturday. He should not be written off as a footballing force in the here and now but it is now painfully obvious that his true greatness lies in the past.

Tonight, he did whatever he could to drag it into the present. Ronaldo was not even remotely United’s worst player. Particularly at the outset he played with thrust and intensity. One moment he might drift over to the left to combine with Jadon Sancho, the next he would be on the right flank, freeing Anthony Elanga to move into the box. If Atletico Madrid were going to plug up the penalty area he was going to do whatever he could to drag them out of there.

In that impressive opening third of the game, so easily forgotten in the morass that followed, United and Ronaldo were freewheeling, all quick interplay and fizzing moves down the flank. Then came the setback: a defensive line all too easily played through, Harry Maguire careening into no man’s land, Diogo Dalot trying to mark three players at once. Renan Lodi struck and with it went United’s sense of stability and any belief in the plan that they applied themselves to in relatively impressive fashion.

That is not on Ronaldo. Nor is it entirely on him that when their chips were down United did what they and Juventus before them have done in this sort of game, they hit and hoped in the general direction of the FIFA-recognized greatest goal scorer in history. Surrounded on the right byline in the 66th minute Bruno Fernandes, seemingly so inhibited by his compatriot in the colors of Manchester United and Portugal, chucked a desperate cross into the box in the hope someone might be there.

Alex Telles was pumping ball after ball in his general direction too. As time wore on it seemed that was all this gaudily talented squad could think to do: trust in the overwhelming narrative powers of Ronaldo. He would bail them out in the knockout rounds as he had in the group stages, as he had done for Juventus with that spectacular bicycle kick against this team.

It did not work. 

The headline statistic was the first European match without a shot in 3969 days, since a draw with Barcelona in the Camp Nou. Ronaldo did not even get close. He did not even get a touch in the box. That itself breaks a six and a half year streak in this competition going back to a group stage game against PSG.

Atletico Madrid played him with no fear, quite something for a side who have suffered so greatly at his feet. After a shaky start Jan Oblak was imperious under those desperate crosses. Every duel Jose Maria Gimenez fought, he won. Maguire didn’t do a bad job of blocking Ronaldo off at set pieces either.

Diego Simeone and his players will surely never forget the numerous devastating blows inflicted on them by Ronaldo, in this competition and beyond. But when all the pre-match talk was about the history between these two, Atletico stayed in the here and now. Over the course of 180 minutes they limited him to two speculative shots from outside the box and one touch of the ball in it.

Atleti may have been the great whipping boys for Ronaldo in this competition but they might yet find themselves taking solace in the fact that they ended his career in it. Almost every summer now brings uncertainty over the 37 year old and his future. The facts, however, are these. Manchester United are out of the Champions League and it will take an significant change in trajectory for them to be back in it in the second year of his contract. Arsenal have the games in hand to streak clear, even after their defeat at the weekend Tottenham’s chances of leapfrogging the Gunners are comparable to the Red Devils’.

Does Ronaldo fancy the Europa League? He should. Thursday nights are great fun and the music slaps. Would another team be inclined to let him extend his records in this competition? Paris Saint-Germain might be the only club as taken with potential storylines as Old Trafford and there are few better than uniting Lionel Messi and Ronaldo for one last shot at glory.

But that is the sort of territory we are in now. The beginning of the end may well have been some time ago. For all we know the end of Ronaldo and the Champions League just happened.