In a podcast interview with former Manchester United teammate Rio Ferdinand, Cristiano Ronaldo shared his ultimate career ambition: to score 1,000 goals before hanging up his boots.
In the interview, he was asked to choose between two players he played with across his illustrious career, after which the Real Madrid legend revealed his personal dream of hitting the 1,000-goal milestone:
“As the all-time top scorer, each of my goals is recorded. The next challenge is to reach 1,000 goals.”
At 39, Ronaldo has scored 772 clubs career goals according to Transfermarkt, cementing his place as football’s all-time leading goal scorer.
With Portuguese, since making his debut in 2003, he has scored 215 goals as at his last game. To achieve his 1,000-goal club target, the Portuguese icon would need an additional 228 goals—a daunting challenge many football enthusiasts consider improbable.
Despite a relatively brief stint at Juventus, Ronaldo ranks 14th on the club’s all-time scoring list with 101 goals. Alongside Paulo Dybala, he is one of only two active players from the last two decades to make the list.
During his six seasons with Manchester United, Ronaldo scored 145 goals, making him the club’s 11th-highest scorer. However, his most prolific period was at Real Madrid, where he netted 450 goals, a record unmatched in the club’s history.
He is followed by Karim Benzema and Raúl González on the list of Los Blancos’ greatest scorers.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner remains focused on his goal as he continues to defy age and set new standards in football.
