Cristiano Ronaldo drops biggest retirement hint yet after emotional Saudi goal celebration

Cristiano Ronaldo knows he doesn’t “have much time left on the pitch” after scoring the winning goal in Al-Nassr’s 2-1 victory over Al Rayyan in the AFC Champions League.

Former Liverpool forward Sadio Mane gave the Saudi Arabian outfit the lead in first-half stoppage time, with Ronaldo doubling their advantage in the second half before Roger Guedes’ consolation effort.

Goals from Mane and Ronaldo ensured a winning start in the competition for new boss Stefano Pioli, with Ronaldo finding the back of the net via a curled effort with his left foot after receiving Abdulrahman Ghareeb’s pass.

And there was an emotional element to the ex-Real Madrid and Manchester United man’s celebration as he pointed to the sky in a touching gesture to his late father, a change from his typical ‘Siu’ near the corner flag.

“Today’s goal has a different flavour… I wish my father was alive because today is his birthday,” Ronaldo shared after the game.

Ronaldo’s father, Jose Dinis Aveiro, died of liver failure at the age of 52 in 2005 when his son was 20 years old. It would have been his 71st birthday when Ronaldo scored against the Qatari giants.

The goal was Ronaldo’s 904th in his career and remarkably the 441st he has scored since turning 30, in 523 games. He has scored more goals since turning 30 than he did in his twenties.

And the veteran is aware that he may not have too many more matches to play before calling a day on his career.

“I’m just enjoying playing football now as I know I don’t have much time left on the pitch,” Ronaldo said after defeating Al Rayyan. “It is not important to me now to be the best player or to win awards. What is important to me now is to enjoy and help my team.”

When Ronaldo may finally call time on his career remains to be seen, with the 39-year-old still competing for both club and country. He may wish to play at the 2026 World Cup with Portugal and become the first player in history to feature in six different editions of the tournament.

He has previously insisted that Al-Nassr will be his final club, and even stated upon his arrival in Riyadh that his time in Europe as a player was over, but the contract he signed in December 2022 comes to an end in June.

“I don’t know if I will retire soon, in two or three years… but probably I will retire here at Al-Nassr,” Ronaldo admitted in September. “I’m very happy at this club. I feel good in this country too.

“I’m happy to play in Saudi Arabia, and I want to continue. When I leave the national team, I won’t tell anyone in advance, and it will be a very spontaneous decision on my part but also a very well-thought-out one.”