Peyroteo
Professional Ronaldo PR Guy
There are? Do you have any proof of that? Nevermind winning the Ballon D’Or at 33 when it’s been won at 41...Well he's 34, not 44, and his level has declined, got less than 30 goals for Juventus the season, the first time in 10 years. Still very good, because his level was so high in the first place (in terms of goal output) a modest decline will be in top 10-15 strikers in europe. Will be interesting to see how Messi fares over the next few years.
Modric just won the ballon d'or aged 33 as well. Pique and Ramos are still at the heartbeat of the Barca and Real defence still in their 30s.
Jamie Vardy still having his best seasons aged 32. Buffoon at 41 is/was still playing a high level.. Not every player is like this, but there is certainly more of them than before.
Ronaldo has played at the highest level since 2003 playing pretty much every week, often more than once. Look at the number of games he’s played in his career compared to other top players and it’s a huge difference. Especially since pretty much all of them have been at the highest level, he didn’t go to play in the US or Qatar.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_footballers_with_the_most_official_appearances
He’ll end his career with the outfield player with most games played in football history.
Modric is a good example but then you talk about defenders and goalkeepers which are completely different. The only other top forward I remember at this age was Zlatan. For every example you give there are 1000 examples of players declining or retiring very early.
Ronaldo’s longevity is not normal or in line with what happens to other players of the same generation in any way whatsoever. Completely taking longevity away from the discussion when comparing to past legends because of advancements in sports science is bullshit.