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Cristiano Ronaldo's first Man United goal: Opposing GK reminisces

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'Ronaldo owes me a great deal' Shaka Hislop on Cristiano's first Man Utd goal (2:09)

Shaka Hislop reminisces on his part of the Cristiano Ronaldo story, conceding the first goal he scored for Manchester United. (2:09)

Cristiano Ronaldo scored 145 goals in 346 games across two contrasting spells at Manchester United, but it began with a strike against Portsmouth in November 2003.

Then 18 years old, Ronaldo came off the bench at Old Trafford deep into the second half. Five minutes later, he was standing over a free kick from 25 yards out, with now-ESPN pundit Shaka Hislop standing in goal.

"It was from a very tight angle." Hislop said. "When it was coming in, I thought Nicky [Butt], would get to it, so I was kind of waiting for a touch from Nicky. But then as he started running with Nigel [Quashie], the two of them threw legs at it. It missed the both of them, sneaks in at the far post.

"He [Ronaldo] had just signed and I heard a lot of the hype about him. But then if you remember, Ronaldo, in his early Manchester United days, overdid everything. By his own admission he overdid things.

"It was only after he got to Manchester United and worked alongside the likes of Paul Scholes -- how efficient he was, how exact he was with his passing -- that his game started to mature. Of course, at the time, nobody could guess what he was going to do. He's a good player. He's going to go and do great things, but not at the level that he eventually achieved."

It was the third goal in a 3-0 United win, now just one among Ronaldo's 923 and counting.

"I wouldn't say I was at fault," Hislop said, before joking: "But I would say Ronaldo owes me a great deal."

- Cristiano Ronaldo at 40: ESPN's longread on his legendary career
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- The Football Reporters podcast: How Ronaldo's Man United return unravelled