Cristiano Ronaldo’s Ex-Teammate Claims He’d Join ‘Lowest Professional League’ To Hit 1,000 Goal Milestone

Cristiano Ronaldo has one key target set for himself, and he has been open about it: scoring 1,000 goals in his career. He mocked Pele and Diego Maradona during his interview with Rio Ferdinand, saying that he wanted all of his goals to be recorded, hinting that the Brazilian legend used to add to his tally because there was no proof.

Cristiano Ronaldo Will Do Anything To Score 1,000 Goals, Claims Ex-Teammate

Nani has been close to Ronaldo since their early days together at Manchester United in 2007. The Portuguese winger has always backed his countryman as the best and has now made a surprising comment on the 1,000-goal target.

The former Orlando City star claimed that the Al-Nassr captain is desperate to score 1,000 goals and will achieve it easily. However, he believes that the forward would not shy away from dropping to a lower league toward the end of his career if he still needs a few goals to reach the milestone.

Speaking to FourFourTwo, Nani noted that Ronaldo aims to be the first soccer star to reach 1,000 career goals. He said:

“He’ll reach 1,000 goals easily, I have no doubt. It’s a milestone that matters to him — something he’s had in mind for years. He wants to reach 1,000 documented goals, because other players like Pele or Romario claimed to hit those numbers, but not all of their goals were recorded. Cristiano could make a movie with all of his. He’ll get there — even if he has to go to the lowest professional league in the world to do it. But he won’t need to.”

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The 39-year-old went on to say that he is not surprised by Ronaldo’s longevity, as he has been clear with his priorities and stayed focused for two decades. He added that the 40-year-old refuses to give up and is confident his performances will carry over into the 2026 World Cup as well.

“Nothing surprises me. Cristiano has always known exactly what he wanted — when you’re that clear about your priorities, and you have the right support around you, everything becomes easier. That refusal to give up is what has made him one of the greatest players of all time. Even now, at age 40, he still amazes people, but not me.”

Ronaldo currently has 959 goals in his career, club and country combined.