Editing Ronaldo (Brazilian footballer) (section)

====1999–2002: Recurring injury problems====
{{quote box|width=29%|align=left|quote="The knee injuries suffered at Inter Milan took away the explosiveness that made him possibly the greatest young footballer of all time, a futuristic fusion of speed, strength and skill. That is not to belittle Ronaldo's achievements in the second half of his career, when he scored eight goals in a single [[FIFA World Cup|World Cup]] [in [[2002 FIFA World Cup|2002]]] and became the first Ronaldo to receive a standing ovation at [[Old Trafford]] [in [[2002–03 UEFA Champions League knockout stage#Second leg|2003]]], but it is the memory of the early years that puts mist in the eyes of grown men."|source=—Rob Smyth, ''The Guardian''.<ref name="Smyth">{{cite news |last1=Smyth |first1=Rob |title=Ronaldo at 40: Il Fenomeno's legacy as greatest ever No 9, despite dodgy knees |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2016/sep/17/ronaldo-40-birthday-brazil-greatest-ever-striker |newspaper=The Guardian |date=17 September 2016 |access-date=1 April 2017 |archive-date=7 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180907161434/https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2016/sep/17/ronaldo-40-birthday-brazil-greatest-ever-striker |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
After two seasons with Inter, A.C. Milan defender [[Paolo Maldini]] viewed Ronaldo and Diego Maradona as the two best players he ever faced, stating, "Ronaldo during his first two years at Inter was a phenomenon."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Landolina|first1=Salvatore|title=Maradona And Ronaldo Best Ever - Maldini|url=http://www.goal.com/en/news/8/main/2008/10/04/895828/maradona-and-ronaldo-best-ever-maldini|access-date=23 September 2015|work=Goal.com|date=4 October 2008|archive-date=23 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923023026/http://www.goal.com/en/news/8/main/2008/10/04/895828/maradona-and-ronaldo-best-ever-maldini|url-status=live}}</ref> Inter had high hopes going into the 1999–2000 season with their attack including Ronaldo and Italian stars [[Roberto Baggio]] and [[Christian Vieri]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hughes|first1=Rob|title=He and Ronaldo Give Inter a Dynamic Duo : For Vieri, One More Change of the Jersey|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/10/sports/10iht-soccer.2.t_4.html|access-date=23 September 2015|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=10 June 1999|archive-date=23 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923023221/http://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/10/sports/10iht-soccer.2.t_4.html|url-status=live}}</ref> However, on 21 November, during a Serie A match against [[U.S. Lecce|Lecce]], Ronaldo felt his knee buckle and was forced to limp off the field.<ref name="autogenerated1"/> A medical examination confirmed that the striker had ruptured a tendon in his knee and would require surgery.<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite web |url=http://www.footballdatabase.com/index.php?page=player&Id=1044&b=true&pn=Lu%C3%ADz_Naz%C3%A1rio_de_Lima |title=Ronaldo (Luíz (Ronaldo) Nazário de Lima) – Milan and Brazil |publisher=Footballdatabase.com |access-date=12 December 2010 |archive-date=13 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181213115304/https://footballdatabase.com/index.php?page=player&Id=1044&b=true&pn=Lu%C3%ADz_Naz%C3%A1rio_de_Lima |url-status=live }}</ref> During his first comeback on 12 April 2000, he played only six minutes during the first leg of the [[Coppa Italia]] final against [[S.S. Lazio|Lazio]] before suffering a complete rupture of the [[Patellar ligament|knee-cap tendons]].<ref name="Knee"/><ref>{{cite news |title=Inter return for Ronaldo |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/european/3013145/Inter-return-for-Ronaldo.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/european/3013145/Inter-return-for-Ronaldo.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=4 September 2018 |work=The Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Ronaldo's physiotherapist Nilton Petrone stated, "his knee-cap actually exploded", and called it "the worst football injury" he's ever seen.<ref name="Explosive">{{cite news |title='Ronaldo's kneecap exploded, it was by his thigh' |url=https://www.fourfourtwo.com/performance/training/ronaldos-kneecap-exploded-it-was-his-thigh |access-date=6 August 2020 |work=FourFourTwo |archive-date=22 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200422081153/https://www.fourfourtwo.com/performance/training/ronaldos-kneecap-exploded-it-was-his-thigh |url-status=live }}</ref>

Ronaldo was forced to miss the entire [[2000–01 Serie A|2000–01 season]] and much of the two seasons either side of it.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ronaldo fights the flab and dodgy knees |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/ronaldo-fights-the-flab-and-dodgy-knees-1050397.html |access-date=30 August 2018 |work=The Independent |archive-date=7 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081207133147/http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/ronaldo-fights-the-flab-and-dodgy-knees-1050397.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Since his Inter teammate [[Javier Zanetti]] had replaced him as the team captain during his absence, he eventually inherited the captain's armband in late 2001.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.inter.it/it/news/5173|title=Ronaldo e la fascia da capitano: "Giusto che la porti Zanetti" e in serata il sì di Cuper|publisher=Football Club Internazionale Milano|website=Inter.it|language=it|date=3 November 2001|access-date=26 May 2017|archive-date=20 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190720074822/https://www.inter.it/it/news/5173|url-status=dead}}</ref> After two operations and rehabilitation, Ronaldo came back for the [[2002 FIFA World Cup|2002 World Cup]], helping Brazil win their fifth World Cup title. Later in 2002, he won the [[FIFA World Player of the Year]] award for the third time, and transferred from Inter to [[Real Madrid C.F.|Real Madrid]].<ref name="Inter"/> Ronaldo was given his most recognizable nickname, {{lang|pt|Il Fenomeno}}, by the Italian press while playing there.<ref name="Wash post">{{cite news |title=Brazil's Ronaldo Has the World at His Feet |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/soccer/longterm/worldcup98/teams/articles/ronaldo4.htm |last=Shepard |first=Michael T. |date=4 June 1998 |access-date=1 September 2018 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |archive-date=19 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151119024924/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/soccer/longterm/worldcup98/teams/articles/ronaldo4.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Smyth"/> His Inter teammate Djorkaeff stated: "when we were training, we would practically stop to watch him. It was extraordinary."<ref>{{cite news |title=Ronaldo makes retirement official |url=http://www.espn.com/sports/soccer/news/_/id/6120565/lack-fitness-led-retirement-18-seasons |access-date=1 September 2018 |agency=ESPN |archive-date=2 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180902012000/http://www.espn.com/sports/soccer/news/_/id/6120565/lack-fitness-led-retirement-18-seasons |url-status=live }}</ref> Prior to his November 1999 injury, Ronaldo had registered 42 goals in 58 Serie A games, in what was the hardest league to score in with the most advanced defensive strategies and the world's best defenders.<ref>{{cite news |title=Luis Nazario Ronaldo |url=https://www.inter.it/en/archivio_giocatore/G0556 |access-date=2 September 2018 |agency=Inter.it. |archive-date=3 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180903215217/https://www.inter.it/en/archivio_giocatore/G0556 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Serie A in the '90s: when Italian football ruled the world |url=https://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/serie-a-90s-when-baggio-batistuta-and-italian-football-ruled-world?page=0%2C2|access-date=15 August 2018 |work=Four Four Two|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180903182945/https://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/serie-a-90s-when-baggio-batistuta-and-italian-football-ruled-world?page=0%2C2 |archive-date=3 September 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> After five years, he had played 99 games and scored 59 goals for ''Nerazzurri''.<ref name="Inter"/> Ronaldo's performances at the club – especially the first two seasons before injury – saw him named among the four inaugural inductees into the [[Inter Milan Hall of Fame]] in 2018.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ronaldo Nazario da Lima Interview. Inter Hall of Fame 2018 |url=https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QR5YSwQ4iek | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211028/QR5YSwQ4iek| archive-date=28 October 2021|website=YouTube | date=6 April 2018 |publisher=Inter. |access-date=1 September 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.inter.it/en/news/61845/hall-of-fame-the-first-editions-4-winners|title=Hall Of Fame: The first edition's 4 winners|website=Inter.it|access-date=22 June 2018|archive-date=22 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180622165311/https://www.inter.it/en/news/61845/hall-of-fame-the-first-editions-4-winners|url-status=dead}}</ref>