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WHAT HAPPENED?
Ronaldo will celebrate his 40th birthday in February of next year but has shown few signs of slowing down. The Portuguese superstar became the first man to score 900 career goals in September and has vowed to reach 1,000 before he hangs up his famous boots. Ronaldo has also opened contract extension talks with club side Al-Nassr and is thought to be is keen to play at World Cup 2026, with Portugal boss Roberto Martinez insisting recently that his national team captain “does not play like he’s 39.”
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Getty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE
However, Ronaldo has come in for criticism for his performances on the international stage recently and showed his frustrations on the pitch by throwing a strop at the end of Portugal’s goalless draw with Scotland last time out in the Nations League. With Portugal boasting a vast array of rich attacking talent, former Liverpool star Didi Hamann says that it’s time for Ronaldo to think about his priorities and believes the Al-Nassr forward has no chance of hitting his target of 1,000 career goals.
WHAT HAMANN SAID
Hamann told Flashscore: “Cristiano Ronaldo can sense his career is coming to an end soon, which is probably why he acted the way he did against Scotland. His ego has made him the player he is today. But, I wasn’t a big fan of his antic in the Euros – he put his interests ahead of Portugal’s interests.
“Ronaldo has scored a few goals in the Nations League, but does he make them a better side? I’m not sure, they’re a massively talented team who could win these games without him. Ronaldo is at a point in his career where he needs to start prioritising the team instead of himself. I’m not sure how much of the say the manager has in team selection, which is a big issue. I’d be very surprised if Cristiano Ronaldo reaches 1000 career goals, I don’t think he can go on for that long.”
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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR RONALDO
Ronaldo will be hoping to add to his huge haul of goals later on Tuesday when Al-Nassr take on Esteghlal Tehran in the AFC Champions League. The match has been moved to Dubai due to current security fears in Iran.
