There is no doubt about it – Cristiano Ronaldo is football’s biggest superstar. One of the greatest and most famous players of all time, his contributions to the sport will be emblazoned across history forever.
Now, however, at the age of 41, Ronaldo has finally begun to slow down. A mercurial talent with preternatural longevity, ‘father time’ finally seems to be catching up with the Portuguese international.
Nevertheless, Ronaldo seems to set to lead the line for his country at the 2026 World Cup. It is always difficult to leave out a player of his monumental status – but football management is full of difficult decisions.
Portugal boss Roberto Martinez has an almighty call to make before their first group game against the Democratic Republic of the Congo on June 17 – which direction will he go? Let’s take a look.
Cristiano Ronaldo 2025/26 Saudi Pro League stats
Games Goals Assists Yellow Cards Red Cards
C. Ronaldo 30 28 3 2 0
Ronaldo’s performance in the Saudi Pro League this season has been inevitably impressive. However, one must examine the level of quality in Saudi Arabia before any credence is put into this.
He was not the top goalscorer in the Saudi Pro League last season – this honour went to Julian Quinones, who plays for Al-Qadsiah. Before moving to Saudi Arabia, Quinones had never been a particularly notable scorer of goals – even a division such as the Liga MX.
In his last Liga MX season, in 2023/24, Quinones scored 21 goals over the course of 48 games in all competitions. This is a perfectly respectable tally, but not one that would be expected of one of football’s top stars.
As such, it seems evident that Ronaldo has been playing amongst lesser competition over the last few years. Against some of the World Cup’s minnows, this may serve him well – but certainly not against the tournament’s top teams.
What should Cristiano Ronaldo’s role for Portugal be at the 2026 World Cup?
In our eyes, Ronaldo should not start for Portugal at the World Cup. This doesn’t mean he can’t be an effective presence for them, however – far from it.
An excellent athlete with unbelievable movement off the ball, modern football is nevertheless simply too taxing for a player of Ronaldo’s age. Players are expected to cover a massive amount of ground in each game to maintain a solid press.
As far back as his ill-fated return to Manchester United in 2021, it was evident that Ronaldo cannot – or simply will not – do this. He is happy to function as an old-fashioned poacher, drifting into space and hanging off the shoulder of the last man.
In this sense, Ronaldo would fit the role of a super-sub, rather than a starter. He could definitely have an impact from the bench, being one of football’s most notable big-game players from across history. If anyone loves a late goal, it’s Ronaldo.
In doing so, he often leaves his teammates in the lurch. Every player on the pitch needs to put in the defensive legwork in the modern game. If Ronaldo is unable or unwilling to perform this role, Portugal’s defensive shape will be rendered compromised.
At Euro 2024, Ronaldo was poor. Despite being Portugal’s star striker, he failed to score a single goal over the course of five games as Seleção das Quinas crashed out in the quarter-finals.
Two years later, Ronaldo is unlikely to have improved. However, this begs the question – is Goncalo Ramos, Portugal’s other centre-forward, any better?
Is Goncalo Ramos better than Cristiano Ronaldo in 2026?
Admittedly, Goncalo Ramos did not have the best of seasons for PSG in 2025/26. Over the course of 30 Ligue 1 games, he scored just six goals and registered a single assist.
Nevertheless, Ramos is not a conventional goalscoring forward. Instead, he almost functions as a defensive forward, putting in strong tackles high up the pitch and holding up the ball to lay it off to onrushing wingers.
Due to this, Ramos is much more suited to starting for Portugal than Ronaldo is. One needn’t be a high-scoring player to be an effective forward in football today – notably, Olivier Giroud was a key player for France in the 2018 World Cup, despite not scoring a single goal over the course of the entire tournament.
Ramos can play a similar role for Portugal. A physically strong player with excellent aerial ability and bags of energy, he can maintain Portugal’s press whilst also contributing to their build-up play.
In today’s game, Ronaldo is too much of an individual – he is not a team player. No one can deny his near-peerless talent, but he would do Portugal more harm than good by starting for them at the 2026 World Cup.