Emanuel Santos received tremendous hate online after he built the infamous Cristiano Ronaldo statue back in 2017. Santos was tasked with building Ronaldo‘s statue during the renaming of the airport in Madeira to Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport. In what was going to be the proudest moment in Santos’ life, the sculptor was heavily trolled for his poor quality of work. 

To further aggravate Santos’ woes, his statue was replaced by another one made by a Spanish sculptor in 2018. It was also reported that the decision to replace the original statue was taken by Cristiano Ronaldo’s family itself. As per the reports, Ronaldo’s family felt disappointed by the lack of resemblance of the statue to Ronaldo’s face. Moreover, they didn’t even notify Santos that his statue was being replaced. 

Cristiano Ronaldo during the unveiling of his statue (Credits: The Sun and Twitter)

Speaking about his feelings when he got to know that his work had been replaced, Santos revealed how devastated he felt. Referring to the trolls he had faced originally in 2017, he said, “It’s the same pain. I feel very shocked. In front of my son (Tiago, who is six years old), I have to show I’m OK, you know what I mean? Take all this as something funny, for him. I feel sad. OK? All I wish is that they put my bust again, in that place.”

Moreover, even Santos’ wife broke down while talking about the incident. She said, “I’m remembering how tough those days were at the time. I don’t want to talk about it…Everybody makes mistakes, and there was no need for so much criticism.” However, amidst all the criticism, Emanuel Santos was asked to build a second bust of the former Manchester United star the following year. 

Where is Emanuel Santos’ second Cristiano Ronaldo statue?

Emanuel Santos was given a shot at redemption by Bleacher Report back in 2018. The sculptor hailing from Madeira was asked to build a second bust of Cristiano Ronaldo. Named the “RonalDo-Over,” Bleacher Report also released a very short documentary covering the entire process of Santos building the second statue. Although it’s important to note that Santos hasn’t received any sort of formal training in sculpting.

In the documentary, Santos can be seen working hard on his second bust of the Al-Nassr star. He also admits that he is feeling “very nervous” before unveiling the second statue. Santos also explained that he had changed a lot since he built the first statue and that he had learned how to take criticism. As he reveals his second attempt, Santos claims that “It’s very good.“

Although Santos’ second attempt received critical acclaim, it wasn’t enough to get installed at the Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport. Santos later said, “In my opinion, the family of Ronaldo got upset with the second one. I don’t know if I’m wrong.” Currently, Santos’ second Cristiano Ronaldo bust is residing at Bleacher Report’s office in London.