[골닷컴] Reporter Dong-Ho Kim = Cristiano Ronaldo’s aging is progressing rapidly. It looks like the various abilities have been cut a lot more than before.
The British ‘Manchester Evening News’ reported on the 13th (Korean time), “The 23 players who received the highest evaluation in FIFA 23 were revealed. But Ronaldo has had his stats cut for the fourth year in a row.”
The five players with the highest stats are Karim Benzema, Robert Lewandowski, Kylian Mbappe, Kevin De Bruyne and Lionel Messi. The overall score is 91 points. Ronaldo is one step lower than them at 90. Heung-Min Son’s stat was 89. Heung-Min Son stood shoulder to shoulder with Neymar, Harry Kane, Sadio Mane, Joshua Kimmich, and Casemiro.
The factor that was most markedly cut in Ronaldo’s ability is speed. Ronaldo scored 87 points in speed last year, but this year it is only 81 points. A whopping 7 points were cut off. His dribbling was downgraded from 88 to 85 and his passing from 82 to 78. Players with the same speed as Ronaldo include Lionel Messi and Virgil Van Dyke. For Ronaldo, who was sprinting on the side at high speed in the past, having the same abilities as them is a humiliation. Messi also received harsher evaluations than in the past.
The observation that Ronaldo’s age might not be ignored. Ronaldo, born in 1985, is now 37 years old. Of course, his athletic ability is bound to decline. In the past, there were many fans who chose Ronaldo, but it seems that the proportion of choosing Ronaldo will significantly decrease this year.
Mbappe reached 97 in speed. Salah has 90 speed. Son Heung-min also received 88 points in the speed section, and his shooting ability reached 89 points, so it is expected to enjoy high popularity as in the past. All of them were evaluated to be running faster than Ronaldo on the ground.
This season, Ronaldo has been under-appreciated under manager Eric Ten Haach. He requested a transfer ahead of the season’s start, but it was rejected because none of the teams he wanted. In leagues, there are cases where he keeps the bench and starts as a starter in non-essential matches such as the Europa League. Compared to the splendid glory, the last years are not going very well.