"40 is just a number" - Al-Nassr's official X account makes post as Cristiano Ronaldo scores first goal as a 40-year-old in SPL clash

Al-Nassr's official X account congratulated Cristiano Ronaldo after the Portuguese superstar scored his first goal as a 40-year-old against Al-Feiha on February 7. The Knights of Najd registered a thumping 3-0 win at Al-Awwal Park to rise to third place in the Saudi Pro League table. At present, they have amassed 41 points in 19 league games and are eight points behind league-leaders Al-Ittihad.

Cristiano Ronaldo celebrated his 40th birthday on Wednesday, yet he continues to defy his age and display a remarkable penchant for regularly scoring goals. He scored Al-Nassr's third goal against Al-Feiha in the 74th minute of the game.

An inch-perfect through ball by Abdulmajeed Al-Sulaiheem found the feet of Nawaf Boushal. The 25-year-old produced a cross inside the penalty box for an approaching Ronaldo who made no mistake with the finish. Before this goal, new signing Jhon Duran scored a brace to make it 3-0 for the hosts.

After Cristiano Ronaldo's goal, Al-Nassr's official X handle congratulated the five-time Ballon d'Or winner. They tweeted:

"40 is just a number."

Cristiano Ronaldo has already racked up 82 goals and 19 assists in 90 games for the Knights of Najd. In his last 10 club games across competitions, the talismanic Portuguese has scored a whopping 13 goals and created one more.

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Exercise physiology professor explains how Cristiano Ronaldo avoids injuries even at 40

Al Hilal v Al Nassr: Arab Club Champions Cup Final - Source: Getty

Exercise physiology professor Rafael Oliveira recently explained the secret behind Cristiano Ronaldo avoiding major injuries even at age 40. Since the 2007-08 season, the Portuguese has missed just 83 games for club and country due to injuries and has hardly had a longstanding fitness issue in his illustrious career.

In a recent interview with O Jogo, Oliveira was asked about Ronaldo's penchant for avoiding injuries despite his advancing age. He said (via GOAL):

"Cristiano certainly has good genetic indicators to avoid so many injuries, without a doubt. And there are other players who, no matter how much they train, are constantly, or systematically, injured, or are more likely to get injured.”

“I haven’t analysed him, I can’t say. There are some analysis videos about him, but I can’t say this 100%, but I imagine that he has a [running] technique that is very close to perfect, while there are other players who probably don’t have these techniques as well acquired, and then they are also more prone to injuries," Oliveira added.

The expert also praised Ronaldo's "recovery strategies" and "willpower," citing them as major catalysts to his fitness. Furthermore, his body has "high levels of muscle mass and very low levels of fat mass," which, according to Oliveira, is crucial to his physical condition.

"I think he is the best example of all in professional terms, in which there must have been very few exceptions throughout Cristiano's life in which he did not follow these rules in a very methodical way. Therefore, from that point on, you can reach that age and still be able to perform excellently," he concluded.

With his current form and fitness, Ronaldo is tipped by many to play deep into his forties and reach his ambition of scoring 1,000 goals for club and country.