LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo announced on Thursday he won’t play for Portugal anymore, ending a career that spanned six World Cups and included a European title and the men’s all-time international scoring record.
The announcement marked the end of a lauded career that began more than two decades ago before Euro 2004 and finished with him walking out on the national team after falling out with coach Jorge Jesus.
"To the Portuguese people,
the day has come for me to hand back the No. 7 shirt of our national team,” the 41-year-old Ronaldo said in a long video message on social media. "I never felt it belonged to me alone but for 23 years I had the privilege and the responsibility of wearing it, defending it and carrying it with me into stadiums all around the world.
“Today the time has come to pass it on to the future. It was not an easy decision because some decisions are not made with the mind alone. They are also made with the heart. A journey that began in August 2003 and changed my life forever has come to an end.”
While long-time peer Lionel Messi finished his career with Argentina after a much anticipated farewell match last month, Ronaldo’s final appearance with Portugal has ended up being on Sept. 24 in a 1-0 win over Wales in the Nations League.
Jesus kept him on the bench for the following match and said he didn’t plan to start him in the next one, so Ronaldo decided to leave the team’s training camp. Jesus later said Ronaldo would be welcome back and the decision to return was up to him.
The Portuguese soccer federation released a statement expressing “deep gratitude and immense admiration” for Ronaldo’s service to the country.
“Cristiano Ronaldo has raised Portugal’s profile and inspired generations of young people who dream of following in his footsteps; for many of us, he is the greatest player of all time!” the federation said.
It said it intends to organize a tribute to Ronaldo “in which the fans and the country can one more time applaud and celebrate a player who has given us so much.”
Like Messi, Ronaldo will keep playing at club level, and is expected to finish his club career at the end of this season with Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.
He is in pursuit of his 1,000th career goal and sits on 985. Of those, a record 146 goals came in 234 appearances with Portugal.
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