If asked whether he had anything to declare on his return to Manchester from Zurich late last night, Cristiano Ronaldo may have struggled to contain himself. Having been accompanied on a private jet by the Fifa World Player of the Year award, the Manchester United forward may just have been tempted to declare that, yes, he is the best player on the planet, something he has wanted to say for some time.

In becoming the first England-based player to win the award since its launch in 1991, Ronaldo fulfilled a lifetime’s ambition and, as he collected the trophy from none other than Pelé at Fifa’s gala ceremony in Zurich, the 23-year-old talked of “another overwhelming moment in my career and my life and a tremendously emotional moment for me”.

The award is the latest in a remarkable haul for Ronaldo, who was named the Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year and Footballer of the Year last season and has since added the European Golden Shoe, the Ballon d’Or and the FIFPro Player of the Year titles. The latest prize — with Lionel Messi, the Barcelona forward, claiming second place ahead of Fernando Torres, of Liverpool — reflected his unrivalled achievements in 2008, in which his 33 goals at club level helped United to win the Barclays Premier League, the Champions League and most recently the Club World Cup. It certainly came as a useful riposte to Messi, who, whether out of petulance or ignorance, omitted Ronaldo from his world select XI for the past year.

“2008 was a great year, both individually and, most importantly, collectively,” Ronaldo said. “We have won the Premier League, the Champions League and the Club World Cup. I also scored many beautiful goals last season and I happily remember the ones against Portsmouth, Roma, West Ham or Bolton. Every player has the dream to win this award. I’m still young and I want to carry on and get better and better, even though it’s hard to achieve that. My ambition is huge.”

Ronaldo has found the going rather tougher this season. Since an initial flurry of nine goals in 14 matches on his return after ankle surgery, he has scored only once in his past 11 games, against Gamba Osaka in the Club World Cup, and has been criticised for some erratic behaviour, whether kicking out at opponents or being sent off against Manchester City for handling the ball, having already been booked.

“Sometimes it’s hard to be Cristiano Ronaldo because one mistake and everyone will kill you,” he said. “I know that, but this is normal. It’s life. If people put me up, everyone is looking at me waiting for a mistake. You have to play well all the time, which is hard to do. It’s difficult performing at the top level all the time. Last season I did brilliantly, but this season I feel I can hit good form and the current Cristiano is getting better and better.”

Marta, the Brazilian, was named the Fifa women’s player of the year at the same ceremony, which featured Arsenal Ladies' Kelly Smith among the finalists.