Why does Cristiano Ronaldo’s “exciting years“ start at 18/19 while Ronaldinho’s don’t until 21? He was a mega talent from a young age renowned for his creativity and flair. Here he is at 19 for example in the Copa America where he looks exciting enough to me.
And why do Cristiano’s exciting years extend well beyond the time when it was commonly recognised he prioritised efficiency over flair, which was basically around 2008, but you could, in a generous mood, extend that to his first season or two in Madrid?
Seems an unnecessary hill to die on as Ronaldo became a better player when he focused on scoring goals rather than creating them.
I don't know, I only count the years from the top league, its hard to know how good Ronaldinho really was back in his early time in the brazil league, as there was lack of coverage and the quality there is generally quite poor.
C.Ronaldo during 2011-2013 at Real Madrid, in my very honest opinion, is truly the best version of Ronaldo, in terms of perfect combination of pace, skills and goals. He was totally unstoppable on the pitch, and very exciting to watch. Personally I even rate this peak version of C.Ronaldo higher than peak L.Ronaldo, or at least equal.
2011
Scored 53 goals, performances are top class, great skills, pace and dribbling, exciting to watch.
2012
Scored 60 goals, performances are top class, great skills, pace and dribbling, exciting to watch.
2013
Scored 55 goals, performances are top class, great skill, pace and dribbling, exciting to watch.
The Ronaldo from 14-19, at around 28/29 to 34 years old, has indeed turn into goalscoring machine, favouring efficiency over flair, and becoming less and less exciting to watch. Yet this older version is also the most successful one, so most people tend remember him as the less exciting version instead.
Another thing is, the peak form/performance of Ronaldo during 11-13, also coincides with peak form/performance of Messi, support by peak Xavi/Ineista. I consider they are more or less equal (Ronaldo vs Messi) during that period of time in terms of performances on the pitch, but Barca had won more trophies and had a better team, so Messi naturally gets more credits during that period.