Cristiano Ronaldo turned 40 on Wednesday and celebrated in traditional style with some deep muscle therapy.
The Instagram photo, showing Ronaldo with his thumbs up and his legs wrapped in Cryosport treatment bags, was posted alongside laughing emojis, but it was almost certainly how he chose to spend his milestone birthday and it offered a reminder of just how dedicated Ronaldo has been, and remains, to his career.
There is perhaps only one obvious feat left for Ronaldo to achieve, one last mountain ridge to scale before he conquers a footballing Everest: he has scored 923 career goals and the quite ridiculous tally of 1,000 is within sight. Given he is scoring almost a goal a game for Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr, those final 77 could be ticked off by the end of next season.
If Ronaldo gets there then many will consider him the first player to achieve the feat, although that is subject to some debate. It was once acknowledged that Brazil pair Pele and Romario scored over 1,000 goals during their careers, yet those figures were eventually rounded down to 757 and 772 respectively with friendlies and other fixtures taken into account.
The great Austria and Czechoslovakia striker Josef Bican reportedly scored close to 1,500 goals between 1931 and 1957, but only 805 of those were recognised by Fifa. So amid this murky statistical world, Ronaldo stands top of the official list – 73 ahead of great rival Lionel Messi – and within sight of perhaps football’s greatest singular achievement.
Ronaldo’s records almost know no bounds: most international appearances (217) and international goals (135), most appearances (183) and most goals (140) in the Champions League, top scorer in European Championship history in both qualifying and tournaments.
Appearing at five World Cups and six European Championships is testament to his remarkable longevity, as is the fact he scored 460 goals in his thirties compared to 440 in his twenties (23 as a teenager). The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has always thrived under the most ferocious of spotlights, and rarely have his standards dipped.
His greatest glories came with Real Madrid between 2009 and 2018, becoming Los Blancos’ all-time top scorer with 450 goals in 438 appearances. He won four Champions Leagues, three Fifa Club World Cups and two La Liga titles with the Spanish giants.
Yet his imprint went much wider. Despite the manner of his departure in November 2022, Ronaldo will never be forgotten at Manchester United, the club that catapulted him into the big time after signing him from Sporting Lisbon at the age of 18.
In a brilliant first stint at the club, from 2003 to 2009, Ronaldo won three Premier League titles and the Champions League under Sir Alex Ferguson, scoring 118 goals along the way in 292 appearances. There was also another appearance in the Champions League final, in 2009, before he was sold to Real for a then world record £80m.
In Portugal, Ronaldo remains a national hero with his record goals tally and inspiring them to their first international title at Euro 2016, although injury limited him to just 25 minutes in the final against France.
Ronaldo rose from humble beginnings on the island of Madeira, shining on the football field before being picked up by Sporting.
He made his debut in a Champions League qualifier against Inter Milan in 2002 and, after bamboozling United players during a pre-season friendly in Lisbon the following year, Ferguson was urged to sign the precocious Portuguese by his squad. A £12m deal would seen as one of the bargains of the century.
After Real, he ventured to Italy – scoring 101 goals in 131 appearances for Juventus and bringing them two Serie A titles among five trophies – and an ultimately unhappy second spell at United, despite another 27 goals, and on to Saudi Arabia.
Al-Nassr reportedly made Ronaldo the highest paid footballer in history on a salary said to be upwards of £160m per year. It has proved a shrewd move. The pace has slowed but the goals have still flowed in a weaker league.
Throughout his career Ronaldo has maintained the highest standards off the field in terms of fitness and motivation. To many he has often come across as narcissistic and arrogant, yet he had the talent, confidence and dedication to back up any boasts.
A key part of his longevity and productivity has been his remarkable ability to avoid injury. That record has improved later in his career, spending an average of only 15 days per season unavailable through injury since 2017-18, according to transfermarkt.
While he can be petulant on the field at times, his professionalism off it has never been questioned, dedicating himself to four hours of daily workouts, a low-sugar high-protein diet, meticulous warm-ups and five daily sleeps. There is a reason he has a six-pack at 40.
It was this devotion looking after his body and honing his craft that has allowed him to prolong his glittering career into his fifth decade. Do not expect it to end until Ronaldo has 1,000 goals on that incredible CV.
Additional reporting by PA
