Can Real Madrid nurture Robinho as Manchester United helped Ronaldo to be a better player, or is he going to be another huge amount in the transfer market?

Real Madrid has had the service of many star football players starting from the days of the great Alfredo di Stefano and Ferenc Puskas. After the unexpected failure of the Galacticos era, Fabio Capello and current boss Bernd Schuster has helped the club to gradually recover from the trophy-less seasons. Are Real Madrid going to throw away the advantage they have now being a better team than a pack of stars? Will the probable arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo destroy the harmony in the team? Is it worth allowing Robinho to ‘grow up’ and be a better player?

The latest transfer speculation say that Robinho will be moving to Chelsea for a fee of 60M euros if Real Madrid buy Ronaldo. Whatever the offer be, the question is, “Is the deal worth it?” The Real Madrid and Spanish football enthusiasts know the role Robinho has had at the club. Is Ronaldo worth it? Who is a better player for Real Madrid?

Answering these questions are tough for any football pundit - let’s take a look at the history of both players and how they evolved through the ranks in their own clubs:

Ronaldo - from Cristiano to Ron

Ronaldo was nurtured in Portugal by his former club Sporting Club de Lisbon, where another Portuguese great, Luis Figo, learned the tricks of the trade. Ronaldo accelerated through Sporting’s youth and reserve teams into the first team, and his progression through Portugal’s youth ranks was much the same.

After becoming a regular in Sporting‘s side in the 2002/03 season, he was snapped up by Manchester United in August 2003 after making a great impression in a friendly victory over his future team. He was handed the coveted number 7 jersey, and that alone shows the responsibility and respect Ferguson handed on to him.

However, the growth from a talented boy to a world-class player took four years. Although Ronaldo was highly regarded, bad shots, careless dribbling skills that gave away the ball too easily, poor set-piece ability, and irresponsible nature made some pundits think that he did not have what everyone thought he had.

But he has made remarkable progress in the last two and a half years. He has worked hard on set pieces and his ball control, especially in the air, has greatly improved.

Also, one should remember why Ruud had the infamous row with Ronaldo in training - Ronaldo did not and would not pass the ball up front. It is only when the 2006/07 season started he showed he fully understood the need to pass the ball, resulting in more goals for himself and the team. The young boy now seems to understand the importance of taking responsibility and the need to play as a team.

In short, Ronaldo needed a considerable amount of time to settle down in a club like Manchester United, which boasts of the best bosses in the world, combined with a great staff and a many great footballers. But, in the last couple of years, he has matured and developed into a world-class player.

Moving on to Robinho

When it comes to Robinho, it seems that he is copying Cristiano Ronaldo in terms of growing as a world-class footballer. He was regarded highly in Brazil as the successor of the legendary Pele, although coming from the same club - Santos - he does not have the skills that Pele had.

Robinho had similar grooming in Santos as Ronaldo had at Sporting. He debuted with Santos in 2002, and over the next few seasons, became a key player in Santos’ squad. He scored 44 league goals over four seasons, including 21 in the 2004 season, when Santos won the Brazilian league title.

The young Brazilian signed for Real Madrid in 2005 and was considered as a player for the future, but his first two seasons were up and down, and for a good part of the 2006/07 season, he was in and out of Fabio Capello’s starting lineup.

Following the same path?

It is only in the last season Robinho showed more potential and hints of what he can be in the future, thanks to the trust shown by Schuster. Real Madrid’s way of changing managers frequently have not helped the club, and Robinho would agree. But by the way he played last season in helping Real Madrid successfully defend their La Liga crown, he’s showing that he‘s gradually following the same path as Ronaldo.

Robinho has already proved his individual skills by winning the Golden Boot at Copa America 2007, scoring six goals as Brazil won the tournament. Ronaldo won the Golden Boot in a competition only in the last season, topping the scoring charts in the Champions League and in the Premier League, the latter of which earned him the European Golden Shoe.

Real Madrid are keen on signing Ronaldo for the next season and is seemingly ready to sell Robinho to make way. But, the big question is, “Why gamble on Ronaldo when Robinho is showing all signs to becoming a better superstar in the coming years?”