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Cristiano Ronaldo drops major retirement hint days ahead of Euro 2024
Published 12:52 12 Jun 2024 BST
Updated 13:06 12 Jun 2024 BST
Homesport
This tournament could be the swan song
With Euro 2024 rapidly approaching, all eyes are on the record-breaking Cristiano Ronaldo as he gears up to become the first player to play in a sixth consecutive European Championship.
However, ahead of Portugal's highly-anticipated opener against Czech Republic on Tuesday June 18, the worldwide icon has dropped a fresh hint on a potential retirement as per Fabrizio Romano:
"I don't have many years left in football, so I have to enjoy it. I'm in love with football, every game is special, imagine at the Euros with Portugal, you feel proud. It's a dream, like when I was 20."
Ronaldo, coming off the back of a 50-goal season for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia played a huge part in the victory of the Euro 2016 tournament, scoring two equalisers in the crunch 3-3 group-stage draw versus Hungary. A vintage Euro performance.
Upon advancement into the knockout stages, he then bagged a crucial second-half opener against Wales in the semi-final, before playing a vital role on the sideline in the final after an early injury forced him off.
Can Portugal go all the way again?
Portugal's squad is packed with new talent and Ronaldo is confident going into the tournament speaking to UEFA:
"I firmly believe that this team will bring a lot of joy to the Portuguese fans, beginning with this EURO.
"However, in my opinion, the best generation of players are always those who win (major trophies). I hope this national team will win because it's an incredibly talented squad.
"As we all know, though, talent alone is not enough to win. There are many things that go into winning a major tournament like this one.
"We have all the ingredients to win it, but we'll take it one step at a time, game by game, all the while believing that we can win it. What we achieved in 2016 was historic, both in Portuguese football and world football. Now we have our feet firmly on the ground but our mind up in the sky to look up and see that it is possible to win the EURO."
Fans will be awaiting Ronaldo's potentially final performances on the huge European stage.
