"He will only decline with age" - Pundit believes Cristiano Ronaldo will not hit 1000 goal milestone even if he plays in SPL until he's 42

According to former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit, Cristiano Ronaldo is unlikely to register 1000 goals in his career. The Portuguese legend is playing for Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr and currently has 907 professional goals to his name.

The 39-year-old may be in the twilight of his career but remains one of the elite goalscorers in the world. Cristiano Ronaldo has scored goals for fun all through his career and has shown no signs of slowing down.

The Portuguese icon recently stated in an interview with former teammate Rio Ferdinand that he wants to score 1000 goals before the end of his career. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner will turn 40 next year, but that magic number may not be beyond him.

However, speaking to Jeffbet, Petit insisted that Ronaldo will slow down as he ages.

"Cristiano Ronaldo won't reach 1000 goals, even if he plays in Saudi Arabia until 42 years old. It will be extremely hard to average 30-40 goals a season at that age, and he will only decline with age. I don't expect him to get near that figure in all honesty," said Petit (via GOAL).

Ronaldo has scored nine goals from 12 games for Al-Nassr this season. He had a wonderful opportunity to score his 908th goal on Tuesday in the Kings' Cup, but missed a last-minute penalty against Al-Taawoun. The former Real Madrid man scored 44 goals from 45 games for Al-Nassr last season.

---

Which club has Cristiano Ronaldo scored the most goals for?

Cristiano Ronaldo

A bulk of Cristiano Ronaldo's goals have been scored for Real Madrid. The Portuguese superstar moved to the Santiago Bernabeu from Manchester United in the summer of 2009.

The player spent nine seasons with Los Blancos, winning every trophy on offer, including four Champions League titles. He ultimately ended his tenure with the LaLiga giants in 2018 and moved to Juventus.

Ronaldo left Real Madrid as their record goalscorer, having registered 450 goals from 438 games. He has also scored 145 goals in 346 games for Manchester United, over two stints.

The player left a lasting impression in Turin as well, registering 101 goals from 134 games for the Serie A giants during his three-season stay. He is also the top goalscorer in men's international football, with 133 goals for Portugal in his career. Ronaldo has scored 73 goals for Al-Nassr so far, including six goals in the Arab Club Champions Cup, which was deemed by FIFA as a friendly tournament.