LISBON — With Cristiano Ronaldo set to be 45 years old when Portugal hosts the 2030 World Cup alongside Spain and Morocco, one might think it’s unlikely that he’ll be on the squad for what would be his seventh World Cup.
But don’t tell that to Portugal’s manager Roberto Martinez. “No one should doubt that (he could play in 2030),” Martinez said in an appearance on Cadena Ser radio. “He’s earned it.”
Ronaldo, who debuted for Portugal at 18 in August of 2003, is comfortably the country’s leader in all-time appearances (226, 80 more than Joao Moutinho) and goals (143, 96 more than Pauleta).
He led Portugal to the 2016 European Championship and to a fourth-place finish at the 2006 World Cup, the country’s best finish at a World Cup since a third-place showing in 1966.
A penalty-kick goal against Ghana at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar made him the first player to score at five different World Cups.
Ronaldo and Argentina’s Lionel Messi are set to simultaneously become the first players in history to appear in six World Cups at this summer’s event.
“I have worked with many players that have won a Champions League or a Ballon d’Or, and the next day they lose their appetite. What we have with Ronaldo is an example of a different mentality,” Martinez said according to Reuters.
“I believe that having that goal is what allows for longevity. Of course, there is a genetic aspect, the work he puts in – he uses everything that can help his body – and his mentality.”
Portugal, in group K for the first-ever 48-team World Cup, opens play 17 June against the Democratic Republic of Congo in Houston.
