Cristiano Ronaldo struck a penalty so hard that it injured Willy Caballero in 2013 | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo knows how to strike a football.

It’s one thing to score more than 800 career goals, but it’s another thing entirely to have amassed so many of them in extraordinary fashion.

Yes, the Manchester United star will gobble up tap-ins until he’s blue in the face – which striker wouldn’t? – but let’s not pretend as though he hasn’t always had an eye for the spectacular.

Ronaldo’s stunning shot power

Whether it’s the knuckle-ball free-kicks of his first spell at Old Trafford or his long-range rockets at Real Madrid, Ronaldo has brought millions of people to their feet by scoring wonder goals across his illustrious career.

And although the world-class technique that goes into each and every one of them is frankly beyond our feeble mind, there’s no denying that there’s something to be said for pure power.

One look at the rippling muscles of Ronaldo‘s thighs and you quickly understand why his strikes from distance have enough power behind them to make you wonder why goalkeepers even bother.

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And having that extra injection of power is useful from every distance because it can be just as effective as ensuring that a close-range finish beats the ‘keeper as it can be for scoring from 30 yards.

Besides, the very power that has allowed Ronaldo to bag so many Puskas Award contenders is also a skill that has helped him to thump home penalties as though the net owes him money.

Ronaldo’s ruthless penalties

In fact, you only have to look at one spot-kick from Ronaldo’s time in Spain to get a real sense of the power in his right boot because it was enough to leave the goalkeeper injured. Yeh, seriously.

Back in the 2012/13 season, Ronaldo was living his best life in a 6-2 win over Malaga where he scored an emphatic indirect free-kick past Willy Caballero to move to 200 goals for Los Blancos.

However, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for Ronaldo because he also missed a penalty, seeing his fizzing strike denied by the toe of Caballero and subsequently leaving him needing treatment.

When Ronaldo injured Caballero

In footage that still looks remarkable almost a decade down the line, the future Manchester City and Chelsea shot-stopper can be seen squirming in pain having blocked Ronaldo’s thunderbolt with his trailing leg.

Caballero had to play on until the game could be stopped, but it was clear from the very first second that the pain had set in and it’s no wonder that he hit the deck when he eventually had the chance.

And although he initially played on, duly conceding Ronaldo’s indirect free-kick, he was ultimately forced off with the injury and replaced by Carlos Kameni. So, be sure to check out the penalty in question down below:

That’s got to hurt. Rather you than me, Willy.

Ouch…

There’s always a chance when a player aims their penalty down the middle that the goalkeeper’s trailing leg will get to the ball, but Caballero probably wished that his out-stretched toe had just fallen short.

Besides, you know Ronaldo’s shot has plenty of gusto behind it when players paid big bucks to dive in front of these fizzing strikes are left sprawled out on the pitch and, well, you and understand why.

We talk ad nauseam about the fact that Ronaldo is the ultimate footballing machine who prides himself on physical perfection, but it’s tough to dismiss it as a cliché when you see moments like that.

“De Jong to Man Utd IMMINENT” (Football Terrace)

Caballero dipped his toe into finding out about Ronaldo’s power and he’s probably glad that he didn’t dip in any more.