Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the biggest names in modern-day football. The star forward has not only made a mark in club football, but also in the international arena. In the Euro 2020 qualifiers against Luxembourg last week, Ronaldo found the back of the net for the 94th time in a senior game for Portugal. With the goal, he took his overall career tally to 699 goals. Now, as a mark of honour, it seems Portuguese club Sporting Lisbon, where Ronaldo started his football career, may name their stadium after him.
Sporting Lisbon’s 50-000 seater stadium, which is currently called Estadio Jose Alvalade after the club founding member, is open to renaming itself after Cristiano Ronaldo once the footballer announces retirement.
“It’s a theory we will not shelve and obviously we’d be very proud to have his name associated with us. Cristiano is and always will be one of the greatest symbols in the history of our club,” Sporting president Frederico Varandas told Tuttosport.
“We’re already keeping his values on the walls of the youth academy, focusing on passion, sacrifice, discipline, leadership and determination. Cristiano is certainly the best Portuguese player of all time and one of the best athletes in the history of the sport,” he added.
Ronaldo, who graduated from Sporting academy, began his football career with the Portuguese club in 2002-03 season. He became the first player to feature in U-16, U-17, U-18, the B-team and the senior team in a single season for the club. After making his mark in Lisbon, which included Sporting’s 3-1 win against Manchester United, Ronaldo was brought to Old Trafford by the then United boss Alex Ferguson, in 2003.
After six years at the club, Ronaldo was bought by La Liga club Real Madrid, where he spent 11 years, before signing with Juventus in 2018 after nine years at the Spanish club.
First Published:
Oct 14, 2019 12:00 IST
Source: HindustanTimes