It will be seen that retirement is not yet an option because the Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo confirmed that he will only retire once he achieves the historic landmark of 1,000 career goals. The statement was made by the 39-year-old forward who won the Best Middle East Player in the Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai.
The BBC tends to indicate that recently, Ronaldo was able to net two goals in the 3-0 victory of Al-Nassr over Al Akhdoud, bringing to 956 his total in club and country goals. The landmark accomplishment now seems to be well within grasp with his current scoring rate.
After leaving Manchester United, Ronaldo joined Saudi Pro league team Al-Nassr in late 2022. He has committed his long-term future to football, as in July last year, he signed a new two-year deal, which will see him stay at the club until 2027, despite being close to 40.
In the speech at the awards ceremony, Ronaldo acknowledged that it is not that easy to play at the highest level but he is motivated. He stressed that he loves football, geography does not become a factor since he loves playing whether it is in Europe, Middle East or any part of the world.
The Portuguese star also repeated that he wants to win trophies as well as get personal records. On the one hand, his personal performances have been bountiful, but Al-Nassr have won only one major trophy since he was hired, the Arab Club Champions Cup of 2023.
In January this year, Ronaldo informed Piers Morgan that he will be retiring soon because he knows that it will be difficult to leave the game emotionally. Nevertheless, he has recently indicated that the 1000 goal mark might be the last chapter in his glorious career.
Ronaldo has already scored 13 goals in 14 league games during the season, which has allowed Al-Nassr to have a four-point lead at the top of the Saudi Pro League. In fitness he has all the odds and the football world is now gearing up to witness the world history as he pursues the same.
