The reason he didn’t have the longevity was he liked partying and fast food, he is rated so high as his ceiling is probably the best of all time. I always think what would of been if he had Ronaldos work ethic
It's the story of a thousand great, semi-known, and nameless footballers all around the world. It rings as hollow to me as how Morrisson (for example) was this incredible talent I still read about here. Who cares? They didn't accomplish enough to be put in that sort of company as R10 gets put in by too many people IMO. That's what makes the greats so special, there's a hundred different ways your talent can't prevent you from your career going sideways, but the great ones never lose sight of their focus. The ceiling or talent is so massively overrated by a lot of fans, and I'm guilty of it myself at times, but I feel less and less sympathetic to it when it comes to ranking great players, and a guy like CR7, who you mentioned with his work ethic, is a big part of that evolution in my thinking. Never saw the guy as that talented of a player, just a tricky winger with a big motor but not much football IQ, he could have easily been Quaresma (who was considered just as, if not more talented). It just shows that the ceiling or talent, whatever you want to call it, is not that important in the end, and I feel people's perception of it shouldn't be enough to elevate a player above players who actually validated their talent, even if perceived as lesser than a player like R10. Everybody is talented in some way, but the work is what matters. Especially a guy like CR7, much better looking, much more ways to be distracted, etc, never missed training, always first in and last out, just gotta give it up to him.
PS: Apologies for the soliloquy, I'm a bit buzzed.