Cristiano Ronaldo is the very embodiment of footballing superstardom and one of the greatest, most iconic footballers of all time. His storied rivalry between himself and Lionel Messi will forever go down as one of the things that we, as fans, are incredibly lucky to have witnessed for ourselves.

While CR7 has picked up a host of personal honours in his glittering career, he has also played in some legendary teams along the way. With a superstar like Ronaldo, it's only necessary that the players he has around him be incredible in their own right. Here, GIVEMESPORT have taken on the task of creating a starting XI of Ronaldo's most played with teammates.

Goalkeeper and Defenders

Iker Casillas, Alvaro Arbeloa, Pepe, Sergio Ramos and Marcelo

Ronaldo has been blessed as an attacker with the knowledge that, the majority of the time, the goings-on behind him were just as secure as what he could impact in the attack. With a list of defensive teammates that includes the likes of Dani Carvajal, Alvaro Arbeloa, Raphael Varane, Rio Ferdinand and many more, four players have stepped out alongside Ronaldo more than any other defenders.

Starting between the sticks is one of Real Madrid and Spain's most legendary players, who is widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers of all time, in Iker Casillas. An incredible goalkeeper may only be as good as those in the line in front of him, but there are certainly no slouches between the semi-psychotic pairing of Sergio Ramos and Pepe, with whom Ronaldo enjoyed storied success alongside with Real Madrid across a combined 685 appearances together, as well as Portugal for the latter, lifting the European Championship in 2016 with Pepe, overcoming France in the final.

Pepe also has the biggest partnership to boast, as he has played with Ronaldo more times than anyone else, with a massive 346 games that continues on today in the national team.

On the right of the backline is the ever-consistent Alvaro Arbeloa, who enjoyed more than 200 appearances alongside Ronaldo and was a mainstay in the Los Blancos side until his eventual departure in 2016 to West Ham United for a short spell.

There was little question, though, about who would play on the left of this wall. Marcelo takes a clean run to the left-back position, having been synonymous both in their brilliant friendship and down the left flank with Ronaldo across their time together at Real Madrid, with trophies spilling over in the proceeding.

Midfielders

Luka Modric and Paul Scholes

Pictured here also alongside another who will feature further down this list, Paul Scholes had to beat away tough competition from Toni Kroos to take this midfield spot. Often regarded by other legendary names as one of the finest footballers of all time, Scholes' wizard-like passing range and howitzer of a shooting foot carved him out as one of the Premier League's greatest and most iconic players, much like Ronaldo, who he enjoyed a very successful 183 game run with.

The duo went on to win a plethora of titles together, winning three Premier League's and a Champions League before CR7 made his way to Madrid. It was three years after his move to Los Blancos that he would be joined by the midfield partner to Scholes in this side, in Luka Modric. A working relationship that would span 222 games.

The 2018 Ballon d'Or winner is one of the silkiest and craftiest central players the world game has ever seen. As well as being part of the famous "three-peat" winners of the Champions League with Ronaldo, making it four as a duo overall, Modric also picked up two league titles and several domestic trophies as part of a glittering Spanish career that stretches on today.

Attackers

Wayne Rooney, Karim Benzema, Angel di Maria

A legendary attacker himself, it's only correct that Ronaldo also rubbed shoulders with some of the best attacking talent the world has ever seen. It would be remiss of us not to mention, and include one of, his two partners-in-crime in Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale, forming the iconic "BBC" attacking trio that enjoyed so much success together. Where Ronaldo brought prowess, Benzema brought precision across his whopping 342 matches with Ronaldo, and Bale brought chaos over his 157. It was a pure cocktail of footballing heritage that will be remarked upon as one of the greatest attacks of all time as the years roll by, especially when they had an equally legendary "MSN" to bounce their fortunes back off.

Though Bale was a big part of that legendary attack, it is not him who stands at the front of the pack as Ronaldo's most played with right-wing teammate. That specific accolade goes to Angel Di Maria, who turned out alongside Ronaldo 166 times, which is only nine more showings than Bale. The linkup between the two wingers was far from ineffective, however, as the duo combined for 28 goals across their spell together.

Wayne Rooney's partnership in attack with Ronaldo, which we saw 206 times in some of Manchester United's glory days perhaps rebounded him onto becoming the star he is today. He combined with Ronaldo for a goal once every eight games over a 206-game spell alongside each other, and formed a duo that the Premier League will never be forgotten.