– It never even crossed my mind to end my national team career. (…) People said “he's finished, he's 39, he's getting old”. Why? Because I didn't score a goal at the European Championships? And what happened shortly before? I scored 10 goals in the qualifications and scored two against Ireland before the Euro. I will silence these words of criticism – Cristiano Ronaldo announced a few days ago. Many experts claimed that he should give up playing for the national team and soon his sports career. However, the Portuguese has no intention of meeting their expectations. He is still in excellent form, which he proved during the September training camp.
He scored twice then and it was mainly thanks to his goals that the national team won two victories in the Nations League. What's more, in the match against Croatia (2:1) he reached the magic barrier of 900 goals in his career, and in the match against Scotland (2:1) he exceeded it. These two goals were of great importance for Ronaldo, who was unable to control his emotions on the pitch.. And as it turns out, these goals also had a huge meaning for Al-Nassr fans, who decided to celebrate the striker's feat in a special way.
Fans welcome Cristiano Ronaldo back from international break, praise his exceptional performance
Ronaldo returned to the game against Al-Nassr on Friday. That day's opponent was Al-Ahli Jeddah. The match ultimately ended in a 1-1 draw, but it was not until the 90th minute that the Portuguese's team managed to equalize. And although the team lost points and Ronaldo himself did not manage to get on the scoresheet, he had reasons to be happy.
Just before the match, a surprise was waiting for him. The fans had prepared a spectacular display to commemorate Ronaldo's 900-plus goals. It featured the player himself during his signature celebration, as well as a sign informing that he had reached the magic goal barrier. Below it was another banner with the words “Only heroes achieve glory,” which translated into Polish means “Only heroes achieve glory.”
What's more, Ronaldo was given a special jersey. On the back was the inscription “900 goals” and additionally at the top, where the player's name should have been, was the phrase “GOAT”, which means “the best in history”. The Portuguese reacted to these surprises eloquently. He waved to the audience, lifted his jersey and patted his chest several times, on which was the Al-Nassr emblem. This is how he expressed his gratitude.
Ronaldo's team didn't start the season well
Ronaldo was unable to thank the fans on the pitch, because in the end he did not score a goal, despite having several opportunities. He spent the full 90 minutes on the pitch. Despite this, he is one of the most goal-scoring players in Al-Nassr, and in the entire league. This season, he has already scored two goals and an assist in three matches. In all competitions, he has collected a total of four goals and two assists.
He will have another chance to score a goal on Friday, September 20. On that day, Al-Nassr will play away against Al-Ettifaq. The beginning of the season is not the best for Ronaldo's team – they are in sixth place with five points – two draws and one victory.