Fans believe they’ve cracked the code behind a cryptic Cristiano Ronaldo tweet – after he posted ‘who’s counting?’ following yet another goal for Al-Nassr.
Ronaldo, 39, posted the mysterious tweet on Wednesday asking after scoring for Al-Nassr on Tuesday, and shared a photo of him celebrating.
That was the 874th goal of his career and it secured Al-Nassr a 1-0 win away from home in the first leg of their Asian Champions League last 16 tie with Al Feiha.
He debuted a new celebration to mark the goal, running to the corner flag, jumping, and putting his hands on his chest in a diversion from his trademark ‘Siuuu’ routine.
‘Yeah this guy ain’t retiring before he scores goal number 1000,’ wrote one fan on X in response to his tweet.
Cristiano Ronaldo posted a cryptic tweet a day after scoring for Al-Nassr against Al Feiha
Ronaldo debuted a new celebration against Al Feiha in the Asian Champions League last 16
Fans believe Ronaldo is targeting a colossal 1,000 career goals after he posted ‘who’s counting?’
‘1000 goals, we will be there for the greatest achievement ever,’ said one, adding a goat emoji to suggest he is the greatest of all time.
‘874 and still counting,’ wrote another.
‘1000 Goals Loading,’ said one.
Ronaldo holds the official record for the most goals ever for club and country already, having netted 874 times during his career.
He’d need a good few seasons under his belt to get to 1,000, however. He has scored 45 in 51 games at Al-Nassr – great going, but at that rate he’ll take a while to accumulate the 126 still needed.
Pele is credited with 1,279 goals by Guinness World Records, a total which includes friendlies, but it has fuelled debate.
FIFA credits Pele with 1,381 goals in the same number of games, 1,363, proving how it can be difficult to count for more historical figures.
Ronaldo’s total of 874 so far puts him comfortably ahead of Lionel Messi, who has hit the net 821 times in his storied career.
Due to the Asian Cup, there has been no competitive action for Al-Nassr since December, and whilst there was a visit to China during his extended break, Ronaldo wasn’t able to play.
New Cristiano Ronaldo celebration just dropped 👀 pic.twitter.com/ZyODVsfQZI
— Project Football (@ProjectFootball) February 14, 2024
The injury left him cheering from the stands as Al-Nassr crushed Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami 6-0.
At the weekend, Ronaldo stormed off the pitch after watching Al-Hilal’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic win the MVP award at the Riyadh Cup final.
Ronaldo’s new celebration marked a contrast to his iconic ‘Siuuu’ routine (pictured in October)
It was an improvement on the weekend, when he launched a runners-up medal into the crowd
Al-Nassr lost the Riyadh Seasons Cup final 2-0, and Ronaldo launched his runners-up medal high into the stands at the end of the game.
Before next week’s return leg against Al Feiha, Al-Nassr host Al Fateh in a league game on Saturday night, their first Saudi Pro League game since December.
