Is Cristiano Ronaldo still a top player?

Portugal v France - Final: UEFA Euro 2016
The 5-time Ballon d'Or winner will turn 33 in February

#2 Evolving with age

Real Madrid v Sevilla - La Liga
Evolving with age- Cristiano Ronaldo

On the 5th of February, Cristiano Ronaldo will turn 33. No player is immune to the effects of ageing. As much as we tend of think of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as aliens from another planet- they too are after all human.

By the time most players hit their thirties it affects their performance levels on the pitch. Old injuries creep up again. It takes longer to recuperate between games.

Whilst all this is true Cristiano has evolved his game and his style of play progressively over the years. We all remember the Ronaldo of Manchester United when he set the league alight. Slaloming runs, step-overs and an array of tricks and flicks from the skinny Portuguese talent. While he bulked up over the years to get more out of his body, in the last few years at Real Madrid he has made some changes to his game as well.

It was under Carlo Ancelotti in the 14/15 season when the change first began. A change, that has served him well to be a player that goes toe to toe with Messi on the goalscoring charts despite being older. Ronaldo's average position on the pitch became closer and closer to the goal.

Since then he has either been played as a second striker or as a left-winger who does not focus on width or on ball transition from defence to offence.

In terms of taking on players here is an interesting number - in the 13/14 season, Ronaldo attempted 4.63 take-on s per game on average while in the last 24 months that number is fallen by less than half. Not because he is unable to beat players when he runs at them mind you, his success rate is higher than it ever was. He has made a conscious decision to attempt a fewer number of dribbles.

Ronaldo's game now is based on the killing strategy of an apex predator. When he smells an opportunity there is a sudden burst of sheer pace and power to get into the right areas and put the ball away into the back of the net. This is not to say that he has become lazy.

As he gets older, he has extremely cleverly modified his game to conserve energy. To focus on quality more than quantity- running at defenders fewer times with 20% more accuracy as an example.

This adaptation thereby allows him to continue playing games twice a week despite his age and also maintain a high level of performances- Ballon d'Or winning performances.

But surely a lot of players have adapted their game. What about his physical condition? can he survive the gruelling demands of being a top athlete for another 4 to 5 years?

Quick Links

Edited by Porush Jain
Sportskeeda logo
Close menu
WWE
WWE
NBA
NBA
NFL
NFL
MMA
MMA
Tennis
Tennis
NHL
NHL
Golf
Golf
MLB
MLB
Soccer
Soccer
F1
F1
WNBA
WNBA
More
More
bell-icon Manage notifications