The international adventure ended in a way that would have been unimaginable to us just a few years ago, but Cristiano Ronaldo’s ambition to be remembered as the greatest in football history has not faded. Quite the opposite. After scoring in Al-Nassr’s victory over Al-Diriyah, his 980th career goal, the Portuguese star is still dreaming of reaching 1,000 goals in his professional career. In an interview with Spanish journalist Edu Aguirre, a very close friend of his (Ronaldo gives interviews almost exclusively to his friends, after all), he openly declared that he is already the greatest player in football history. At least when it comes to goals.##TWITTER_<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🚨🗣️ 𝗡𝗘𝗪: Cristiano Ronaldo declares himself the MOST COMPLETE PLAYER IN FOOTBALL HISTORY! “If someone prefers Messi, Pelé or Maradona, that’s a matter of personal taste. I RESPECT THAT. “But to say Cristiano Ronaldo is NOT a complete player is a LIE. “I AM THE MOST COMPLETE PLAYER.” — @cnnportugal</p>— The Touchline | 𝐓 (@TouchlineX) <a href="https://x.com/TouchlineX/status/2109565474010702229?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>##Clearly, all the criticism he has read about himself over the years has hurt him deeply.“People haven’t appreciated my goals enough, that moment. They talked more about the fact that I was 85 goals short of 1,000, or about the chances I sometimes miss. I don’t like that, but some things happen naturally. Whether I score 920, 925 or 930… I am the best in history, period” Ronaldo told Portuguese CNN, before slightly softening his stance when the journalist asked whether he really meant the best in history.“When we’re talking about goals. The numbers say it all. I’m not going to say that I have to reach that 1,000th career goal, but if I managed it, it would be fantastic…”##LINKED_NEWS_69661##Confident to the point of excess, as always, although can anyone really dispute this particular claim? There may be better players, but none have been more prolific — not yet, anyway, as Lionel Messi has scored “only” 945 goals for club and country. Here, after all, we are counting only goals in competitive matches, which rules Pele out of the equation. Besides, once we take the numbers out of the discussion, all that remains is subjective taste, doesn’t it?“You can prefer Pele, Messi or Maradona. I understand that and respect it. But for someone to say that Cristiano is not a complete player? That’s a lie. I am the most complete. And I believe I am the best footballer in history. I haven’t seen anyone better than me” Ronaldo insists, remaining entirely subjective in his assessment — and, we might even say, somewhat arrogant.##LINKED_NEWS_69635##Still, he certainly was a complete player. Probably the most complete, too, and no reasonable person would deny that he is a giant of the game.“History has already been written. I’ll be honest: I could end my career today and I wouldn’t regret anything. But I’m still in very good shape, and I can still make a difference. So, instead of thinking long-term, I’m living in the moment” Ronaldo said.##LINKED_NEWS_69690##Those who dislike him will call him arrogant, and they will largely be Lionel Messi fans. Ronaldo himself, however, has nothing bad to say about his great rival. Quite the opposite.“Messi and I shared the stage for 15 years when awards were being handed out, and we always got along well. In fact, once or twice I even translated something from English for him, ha-ha-ha. He was always good to me, too. Our rivalry was a healthy one, like the rivalry between Senna and Prost. We motivated each other”. Both players have certainly secured their places in history, and many people will consider them the greatest of all time, depending on their personal preferences.22.00: (2.75) Levante (3.20) Sevilla (2.65)