Ronaldo has scored in 25 seasons in a row, one more than Ibrahimovic managed
He came off the bench at Al Riyadh on 62 minutes with Al Nassr three up, and made it four. It was career goal number 977, and his first outing since the World Cup.
The run started in 2002-03, at a Sporting side that had no real idea what it had on its hands. Twenty-five seasons later Cristiano Ronaldo scored again as Al Nassr won at Al Riyadh, and became the only footballer to have scored in 25 consecutive campaigns. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who held the mark, managed 24 of them between 1999 and 2022-23.
The match was already settled by the time he appeared. He came on after 62 minutes with Al Nassr 3-0 up through Abdulelah Al-Amri, Angelo Gabriel and Joao Felix. With seven minutes left, Ronaldo took down a low cross from Aiman Yahya and finished from close range. Four-nil, matchday two of the Saudi Pro League done.
What the goal is worth on the ledger
It is career goal 977 in official competition, which leaves him 23 short of a thousand. He is 41, this season is very likely his last, and the round number has moved from statistical curiosity to stated target. The arithmetic says it is reachable, provided the body lasts a full campaign.
It was also his first appearance since the World Cup and since his wedding to Georgina Rodriguez in Cascais, which explains the bench. Ange Postecoglou, in his first month as Al Nassr manager, is easing him back in.
Twenty-five seasons, five clubs
What stands out about the streak is not the volume of goals. It is the absence of gaps. Twenty-five consecutive seasons means never once going a full campaign without scoring, across Sporting, Manchester United twice, Real Madrid, Juventus and Al Nassr, in four different leagues and under more managers than anyone bothers to count. There were injuries. There was never a blank year.
Al Nassr are back out in the next round of Saudi league fixtures. The question left hanging in Riyadh is not whether he reaches a thousand. It is how many matches he wants to need.
By Vasco Almada
Image: YantsImages / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
