“My son told me, dad, please continue playing for a few more years, I want to play with you,” British newspaper Sunsport quoted Ronaldo on March 1.
Ronaldo turned 37 on February 5. He is no longer in form, although he still maintains an impressive physical base. In an interview with DAZN last weekend, the Portuguese superstar revealed that he wants to play for at least four more years, until he is 41 years old.
Ronaldo and Cristiano Jr. during a training session at Man Utd. Photo: Instagram / Cristiano
Sunsport commented that Ronaldo may have to play longer if he wants to make his son’s wish come true.
Cristiano Jr. was born in 2010, is Ronaldo’s first son. The boy showed great potential when he scored 58 goals and assisted 18 other goals in 28 matches for Juventus U9 team. After Ronaldo returned to Man Utd, Cristiano Jr. also followed his father to England, and joined Man Utd’s U11 team, thereby becoming a teammate of Kai Rooney – Wayne Rooney’s son.
Ronaldo also has high hopes for Cristiano Jr. to follow his career. The 37-year-old striker posted a photo of him practicing with his eldest son in a Man Utd training shirt on Instagram earlier this year, and captioned it: “Present and future.”
However, Ronaldo does not pressure Cristiano Jr. to pursue a football career, but can freely choose his career. He once said: “Only time will tell. I will never put pressure on my son. My son will do whatever he likes. What I want most is for Cristiano Jr. and his other children to be happy, choose get what you want. I always support my children.”
Cristiano Jr. signed a contract with Man Utd Football Academy in February 2022. Photo: Instagram / Georginagio
In football history, there were father-son teammates, Henrik and Jordan Larsson playing for Swedish club Hogaborgs BK, or World Cup champions Rivaldo and Rivaldinho for Brazilian club Mogi Mirim. Former Chelsea striker Eidur Gudjohnsen and his father Arnor once set a record for being the only father-son pair to ever appear in the same national team match, when they and Iceland won 3-0 against Estonia in April 1996. But the two have never played on the field together.
Ronaldo scored 15 goals in 30 matches for Man Utd this season, an average of 0.5 goals per match. This is his lowest scoring performance since the summer of 2009 – when he moved to Real. In the last 10 matches, the Portuguese superstar has only scored once – in the 2-0 win over Brighton in the Premier League on February 15.
