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Real Madrid continue to depend on Cristiano Ronaldo

By Aakanksha Sharma

Real Madrid's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates a goal during the Spanish League football match between Real Madrid CF and Girona FC at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on March 18, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / JAVIER SORIANO (Photo credit should read JAVIER SORIANO/AFP/Getty Images)
Real Madrid's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates a goal during the Spanish League football match between Real Madrid CF and Girona FC at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on March 18, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / JAVIER SORIANO (Photo credit should read JAVIER SORIANO/AFP/Getty Images) /
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PARIS, FRANCE – MARCH 06: Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid looks on during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid at Parc des Princes on March 6, 2018 in Paris, France. (Photo by Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Images)
PARIS, FRANCE – MARCH 06: Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid looks on during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid at Parc des Princes on March 6, 2018 in Paris, France. (Photo by Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Images) /

The Champions League is Ronaldo’s favorite competition

While everyone knows of the special relationship that Real Madrid has with the Champions League, it is arguably Cristiano who symbolizes it the best.

While he was struggling in other competitions at the start of the season, he scored in every single match in the group stage of the UCL.

He also became the first player to do so. Ronaldo is currently the top scorer in the competition, with 12 goals, three of which came against PSG in the Round of 16.

A quick look at his heat-maps for the crucial UCL fixtures will tell you that he runs more and he even tracks back to his own box in these matches. The desire is evident and ever-increasing.

It’s important to note that he doesn’t just lift himself in this competition, but he drives the whole team and pushes them to give their best as well. Over the last few years, he has turned into a true leader and motivational figure for Real Madrid.

You can see him giving pep talks during warm-ups, halftime breaks and in the tunnel. He is the first to encourage the team if they end up conceding, asking them to keep their calm. And coming from Ronaldo, it does mean more to the other players because they believe that he will find a way again.

Such is his importance to this side. You can almost see a spring in their step when Ronaldo is on the pitch. Given how wide open this season’s UCL is, Real Madrid will need all this and more from Ronaldo if they hope to complete a hat-trick of Champions League titles.

And you can see that Ronaldo believes it is possible.

Stay tuned to The Real Champs for more Real Madrid coverage!

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