1 June 2003 - Porto Eighty-Sixes The League

On 1 June 2003, Porto earned their league-record 86th point, beating Sporting 2-0 on the last day of the season.

The win capped an incredible season for Porto, who lost only twice and drew five times in 34 league matches. They took the table's top spot in September and held onto it for the duration to claim their 19th league title, but the first since 1999. It was also the first league title for new manager José Mourinho, who joined the club midway through the previous season.

The win over Sporting lifted Porto to 86 points--a Portuguese top-flight record. Benfica had a better season in 1972-73, winning 28 and drawing 2 of their 30 matches, but the league awarded only two points for a win at that time, so Benfica finished with 58 points. Under a three-point system, they would have finished with 86 points as well, despite having played four fewer games.

Porto's success that year extended beyond the league, as they also won the UEFA Cup, Portuguese Cup, and Portuguese Supercup.

5 February 1985 - Silver Polish Makes A Good Present

On 5 February 1985, the 2008 World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo was born in Funchal, Portugal. He would go on to become the world's most expensive footballer.

A right winger, Ronaldo started his professional career in 2002 with Lisbon's Sporting CP. Only 16, he broke into the first team that year, making a total of 31 appearances and scoring 5 goals. In a friendly against Manchester United in the summer of 2003, he so impressed the opposing player that they urged manager Alex Ferguson to sign him. Ferguson complied, bringing Ronaldo to Manchester for £12.24 million.

Although frequently criticized by opposing fans and the media for simulation, Ronaldo blossomed at United, making 40 appearances in his first season as United lifted the FA Cup. More silverware followed, including three straight league titles (2007, 2008, 2009) and the UEFA Champions League trophy (2008). In the double-winning 2007-08 season, he scored a career-best 41 goals in all competitions and won both the Ballon d'Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year Award.

In the summer of 2009, he consummated a year-long courtship with Spanish giants Real Madrid, who paid a world-record £80 million to pull him away from United. He had an impressive first season in La Liga, scoring 33 goals in 35 total appearances as Real finished second in the league to Barcelona by a mere three points. He is on track to exceed that tally in his second season, having already scored 32 goals in 34 appearances, though Real are again trailing Barcelona in the table.

13 August 2003 - You Win Some, You Lose Some

On 13 August 2003, Manchester United introduced its new signings, Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo and Brazilian midfielder Kléberson.

United acquired Ronaldo from Sporting C.P., whom he had joined on a youth contract in 1997 at the age of 12. He joined Sporting's senior team in 2001 at the age of 16 and made 31 appearances for them, scoring five goals.

United manager Alex Ferguson said that he had been tracking Ronaldo for at least nine months, but had been particularly impressed with Ronaldo's play in Sporting's 3-1 defeat of United in a friendly held in Lisbon the week before his signing. The winger had also drawn the attention of Real Madrid, Juventus, and Chelsea, sparking a bidding war that drove the transfer fee up to £12.24 million, making Ronaldo the most expensive teenage signing in Britain to that point.

As if the record signing fee didn't create enough pressure on Ronaldo, Ferguson added to it by giving him United's famous No. 7 shirt, previously worn by United legends such as George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, and - most recently - David Beckham. Ronaldo rose to the challenge, however, and helped lead United to three consecutive Premier League titles (2007, 2008, 2009), one FA Cup trophy (2004), and one UEFA Champions League trophy (2008). He also claimed a number of individual honors, including the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2008.

In July 2009, Ronaldo moved to Real Madrid for a transfer fee of £80 million.

Kleberson, who was signed from Brazilian side Atlético Paranaense for £6.5 million, was less successful, making only 30 appearances for United before transferring to Turkish side Beşiktaş for £2.5 million.