Why talk of Cristiano Ronaldo in decline is baseless

Cristiano Ronaldo may be 30, but there is still a lot left in his tank

Where does the buck stop when you’re Cristiano Ronaldo? Aside from being one of the greatest footballing specimens the sport has ever witnessed, Ronaldo is fueled by the greatest of egos as well. That ego tells us, he is one who sets his own timeline on when to leave the stage. After all he said it himself.

“I love the pressure, when I’m not going to have this pressure, I wanna take my boots off, put it aside and finish my career. That’s it.” – Ronaldo

But frankly that time hasn’t come, even if he is already on the wrong side of 30. This season he has 13 goals in 15 games and still has to deal with criticism suggesting a serious lack of form.

Of course, on closer analysis, the glut of those goals came in only six games. The rest have been a minor issue of misfiring. Now that is going to raise a few eyebrows when it comes to the Portuguese forward, considering under normal conditions that many of his goals are bound to put Real Madrid comfortably on top of La Liga going into the first Clasico of this season.

But that hasn’t been the case and a certain Neymar is currently running away with all the headlines with 13 goals in 14 matches and Barcelona sitting above Real in the table. But does all the blame for Real Madrid’s current predicament fall on their superstar?

Why Ronaldo still has a lot to offer

Though Ronaldo himself would like to think that all which is good with Real, or any team he plays for, mostly comes through him, that is not the case. Although the current Real side are dependent on him, it isn’t entirely working in his favour anymore. He is still the greatest goalscorer the team has ever had, but Ronaldo has not always been about goalscoring.

Few things are starting to affect the bulletproof mindset of the Portuguese star. Firstly, and it is quite evident, club president Florentino Perez has already set upon a Ronaldo-succession project that starts with Gareth Bale being the pivot of the Madrid side.

Certainly a Bale, who is so injury prone and has managed only seven appearances scoring only twice, becoming the main man in a team that has been so dependent on the goals of Ronaldo will definitely hurt at a very personal level. But Madrid was never known for their gratefulness towards great players.

Ronaldo is Real Madrid’s all-time top goalscorer

Secondly, Ronaldo’s performances have had a look of apathy about them. But that is all because of a system that is forcing him to play as a striker, which he clearly doesn’t enjoy. You cannot expect your best player to run riot, unless you give him the license to thrill.

So far, due to injuries to Karim Benzema and Bale, his free flowing role of drifting in from the left has been cut short. And to top that, he clearly doesn’t enjoy playing under Rafa Benitez. Who does anyway?

Lastly Ronaldo is aging all right. Even if he doesn’t carry that incisive threat anymore, those darting runs tearing defences apart, he still does hold on to his goalscoring ability. He keeps getting better and better as he modifies his game to a smart positional sense of football that gets him into those scoring positions – whether with his head, feet or the occasional shoulder.

Ronaldo is a true physical specimen in football, he is in peak condition and maintains it like Ryan Giggs, so questions on his longevity, is clearly up to the man himself as to when he wants to quit playing. Also, with his latest flirtation with Paris Saint-Germain, it is highly unlikely he is thinking of retirement in the next four years. Then again, why should he?

Will Ronaldo move to PSG next summer?

Lionel Messi and Ronaldo are footballers two-point-oh, that come along in ones and once in generations. But in twos? That is really lucky. Any team with either one of them gets that little bit extra, things which only individuals with exceptional brilliance can bring. Individuals who can lift teams to a different level altogether.

Will Ronaldo look for a new challenge?

For Ronaldo, it is not a matter of fading like most footballers who cross the 30-barrier. For him, it is not about when, but why? In this case the ‘why’ part currently seems like the animosity between him and Perez, with the Madrid boss treating the better son definitely like a foster parent would and putting Bale ahead of him, simply as a successor.

But can a Ronaldo or Messi truly be succeeded in terms of what they have accomplished?

Only a foster parent like Florentino Perez would put Gareth Bale ahead of Ronaldo as a successor

Also the fact that Ronaldo, as a man is all about what challenges him on a very individual and personal front – as was clear in his movie – showing how he values his individual achievements, how he feels about winning the Ballon d’Or. So moving to PSG is definitely a bigger challenge, if at 31 he can go there and the French side manages to finally take the leap from being league champions to being serious contenders for the Champions League – or even win it because of him.

“For me every year is a challenge, I don’t care if last year I scored 100 goals, this year I have to be the same.”

That is the kind of man Ronaldo is. Maybe Lionel Messi is a challenge that has grown old, maybe he is looking for something else, something more than Messi to bust his lungs to do even better. He is certainly not fading because legends don’t fade like most footballers do with age.