Cristiano Ronaldo had another great performance scoring two goals for Portugal in a 3-2 victory over Slovakia which gave his country a ticket for the UEFA Euro 2024 in Germany.
Though the legend is 38 years old, he’s been extraordinary with the national team and also playing for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia. “I’m enjoying the moment, which is good. I feel well. My body is responding to what I’ve given it over the past years. I’m happy both with the national team and my club. I’ve scored many goals and I feel good physically.”
Next year, Portugal will be a favorite to hoist the trophy in the European tournament. It’s the biggest event of 2024 and, considering Cristiano and Lionel Messi don’t seem to stop, there will be another inevitable comparison as Argentina will be playing the Copa America.
“Portugal qualified because they played well, have a strong team, and an excellent coach. It’s not a coincidence that we qualified. On a personal level, I’m very pleased with what I’ve done. Now, we need to keep going as a team. We have a few more matches and we need to fine-tune the machine.”
Cristiano Ronaldo admits retirement is not close (Getty Images)
How many goals has Cristiano Ronaldo scored in his career?
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 857 goals in his professional career. Now, even with age as a key factor, the Portuguese star revealed there’s a new challenge for him ahead: 1000 goals. This means retirement from soccer is absolutely not in the horizon yet.
“It’s going to be quite challenging, but it’s about assessing my mental state and motivation. If, physically, my legs treat me as well as I treat them…we’ll see. It’s a step-by-step process. Before reaching 1 000, you have to reach 900 first. I believe I’ll achieve it.”
Cristiano Ronaldo and the historic rivalry with Lionel Messi
In this scenario of retirement talk and age, Cristiano Ronaldo spoke a few weeks ago about the never-ending comparisons with Lionel Messi. By the way, as it happened with the 1000 goals’ statement, he opened up about that subject also during a press conference of Portugal’s national team.
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“The rivalry with Messi? I don’t see things that way. It was a good rivalry. The rivalry is over. If you love Cristiano, you don’t have to hate Messi or vice versa. We are two good, or very good players (laughs). Both of us changed the history of soccer. We are respected worldwide, that’s the most important thing. He is making his own path and I am making mine. And the legacy continues.”
Lionel Messi with Inter Miami (Getty Images)
Are Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi friends?
Well, in that press conference which occurred last September, Cristiano Ronaldo also confirmed if there was a friendship with Lionel Messi. It was an answer which immediately went viral.
“We have shared the stage for 15 years, and we ended up being, I won’t say friends, I’ve never had dinner with him (laughs), but we are colleagues in the profession and we respect each other.”
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