There was a time not long ago when debate raged as to who was the best footballer in the world.

The frontrunners were Portuguese pin-up Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentine spark plug Lionel Messi. Messi held the early lead in 2007 when he finished second to Ronaldo’s third in the FIFA Player of the Year award. In 2008, Ronaldo took top spot as he capped off an unbelievable season for Manchester United in which he tore through the Premiership. Messi finished second in the voting after a strong season for Barcelona.

In 2009, apparently after an inspirational meeting with American basketball star Kobe Bryant, Messi claimed the crown as world’s best, as he and Ronaldo switched places on the list, Ronaldo having joined his childhood favorite Real Madrid at the beginning of the season.

This year set the stage for the latest chapter in the story as both players led their respective nations into the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Unfortunately, only one player showed up to contest the proceedings, and it was not Cristiano Ronaldo.

Mind you, Leo Messi failed to score a single goal during the tournament, and saw his Argentina side blown apart by the thundering Germans in the quarterfinals. However, his impact on his team throughout the tournament was sizable; the only thing lacking was a classic Messi finish. He penetrated opposing defenses and provided service in just the same fashion we have grown accustomed to, but could not find the net for himself. His effort in the quarterfinal against Germany was subpar, perhaps due to an infection he was suffering from, but his work to that point had been, in large part, the reason Argentina made it that far in the first place. And that work included not histrionics, but effort.

Not true of Ronaldo and his performance for Portugal. Coming into the tournament, it appeared this would be his real coming out party as a prodigiously gifted team leader and captain. Never mind the focus on defensive tactics that the Portuguese had identified and developed as their game plan, this was to be Ronaldo’s stage.

Instead, the world was treated to an endless supply of diving, falling, flailing and flopping that has become all too familiar to those who have followed Cristiano Ronaldo over the past few years. His talent and production are legend, but now so is his penchant for over-dramatizing his alleged grievances. It is an unfortunate byproduct of his flair that has been building to a boil, and has resulted in the man who was arguably the world’s best turning into a style-over-substance caricature.

He has painted himself into a corner, really, becoming so reliant on this ridiculous behavior that if the officials are not inclined to participate and reward him for his play-acting, he is now at a loss as to how to cope. He never has been much of a team player, but his sensational individual efforts and ability to change a game always encouraged teammates, coaches and fans to look the other way.

Judged, therefore, on production alone, this World Cup was a complete bust for Ronaldo. Given that Portugal intended to play a defensive style, it needed its best offensive producers to be effective and efficient. Instead, it got the vapid presence of deflated man-child and crashed out of the Cup. Even a 7-0 dusting of vacationers North Korea earned Ronaldo nothing more than a cheap consolation goal.

Ronaldo acted the buffoon from the first minute to the last, but this time the act did not work. I hope he finds a way to pull himself out of this box, as the game needs to see its most talented players display their abilities. Admittedly, the officials in this World Cup, while generally lax and permissive of such behavior, did seem to be under orders to call a tight game on Ronaldo and perhaps a few other known offenders, but CR was all too willing to play the fool. His falling (and falling, and falling) will be the lasting metaphor that speaks to how far removed he is from his one-time perch atop the footballing world.

Ronaldo claims to be gutted by his performance. Here’s hoping he recovers and climbs back up ladder, the right way this time.

By Ken Sweda.

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