Portugal: 41-Year-Old Man Still Playing Football, Shouldn’t He Stop? – Simões Hits Ronaldo

Portuguese football legend António Simões has questioned Cristiano Ronaldo’s future with the national team following the forward’s recent statement explaining his departure from Portugal’s training camp.

Ronaldo, who plays for Al-Nassr, addressed the controversy surrounding his exit from the national team camp in a statement released on Tuesday.

Speaking to Portuguese media outlet A Bola, Simões said: “I am not speaking for [Cristiano] Ronaldo, nor for [Jorge] Jesus, I am defending common sense.”

He added that Ronaldo should understand that wanting to play does not necessarily mean playing every minute of a match.

“If Ronaldo wants to play, there is no harm in that, but he must understand that wanting to play doesn’t mean playing the full match,” Simões said.

The former Portugal international also expressed doubts about Ronaldo’s influence on the national team, comparing the attention surrounding him to that once given to legendary Portuguese forward Eusébio.

“I have some doubts about that [Ronaldo helping the Portuguese team]. I played alongside Eusébio, known as ‘the King,’ I have never seen anything like this happen around a ‘King’,” he stated.

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Simões concluded by questioning how long Ronaldo intends to continue playing, saying: “A 41-year-old man is still playing football… shouldn’t he stop?”