“The greatest there will ever be” - Piers Morgan celebrates Cristiano Ronaldo reaching 900 career goals with emphatic claim
TV personality Piers Morgan called Cristiano Ronaldo the greatest player of all time after the latter's milestone 900th career goal. The Portuguese legend reached that landmark after scoring in the 34th minute of his team's UEFA Nations League group-stage match against Croatia on September 5.
The match ended 2-1 in Portugal's favor at the Estadio da Luz, and congratulatory messages poured in for 'CR7', who became the first man to net 900 career goals. Morgan, who is one of Ronaldo's most vocal celebrity fans, took to X and wrote:
"900 goals for @Cristiano - the greatest of all time, the greatest there will ever be. 🐐 "
Morgan, an English broadcaster and journalist, conducted arguably one of the most infamous interviews in football history when he sat down with Ronaldo back in 2022. Many believe the interview, where Ronaldo criticized Erik ten Hag among other Manchester United personalities, resulted in the mutual termination of his contract at the club in November 2022.
The 39-year-old moved to Al-Nassr in December that year, and has since netted 68 goals in 74 appearances for them. He also continues to be a regular in his country's starting XI, for whom he has 131 goals in 213 matches — both world records in men's football.
Ronaldo's longevity has been particularly impressive, as he has scored an impressive 97 goals since turning 37 (via the New York Times). Lionel Messi, with 838 goals, is the closest to the former Real Madrid superstar on the list of players with the most career goals.
Cristiano Ronaldo has already said he wants 1,000 career goals
With the pace at which Cristiano Ronaldo has been scoring goals throughout his career, it is not beyond him to become the first footballer to net 1,000 goals. He certainly thinks it can be done.
In an interview with former Manchester United teammate Rio Ferdinand on his official YouTube channel (h/t ESPN) last month, Ronaldo said:
"I want to reach 1,000 goals. If I don't have any injuries, this for me is the most important [thing], I want that. For me, the best mark that I can have in football is to reach, first, 900 goals. After, my challenge is to be at 1,000 goals."
Comparing himself to legends of yesteryear, including Pele and Alfredo Di Stefano, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner remarked:
"All the goals I have scored, they have video. They all have video. Listen, I respect all of them [Pele and Di Stefano]. And if you want more goals, I can bring them from training, too. And I will prove to the people after. They prefer this player, or this is the best one. I don't care about that."
There has been a particularly prevalent debate about the number of goals Pele scored during his playing days. Different sources cite different numbers — Guinness World Records, for instance, credits him with 1,279 goals in 1,363 matches. But it is believed that his official tally of goals in competitive games is below 800.