Tyson Fury insists age catches up with everyone, even if you’re Cristiano Ronaldo.
The British boxing legend, and firm Manchester United fan, has sent a message to the football icon that his time at the top of the game might be over.
If it wasn’t evident before, Ronaldo’s decline has been made clear and obvious throughout the course of the World Cup in Qatar.
Having managed one goal in three appearances in the group stage, the Portugal star was benched for their last-16 clash against Switzerland, where his replacement – 21-year-old Goncalo Ramos – announced himself to the global stage with a fine hat-trick.
With his place in the Portugal team for the rest of the tournament now in doubt, his future at club level is also uncertain, having agreed to terminate his contract at Manchester United following his bombshell interview with Piers Morgan.
It is widely claimed Saudi Arabia is Ronaldo’s next destination, with a deal to join Al Nassr worth around £173million-per-season reportedly done and dusted, although the five-time Ballon d’Or winner has denied this.
And – no matter how many abs he has – at the age of 37, Fury isn’t surprised Ronaldo’s reign at the top might be ending.
Speaking about his career-defining victory to topple Wladimir Klitschko back in 2015, Fury admitted the fact the Ukrainian great was 38 and entering the twilight of his career was a big factor behind his win.
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And he insists age gets the better of any athlete – including the world’s best – and, despite still looking in prime shape, Ronaldo is no exception.
“At the time [beating Klitschko] was the Everest,” he said in an exclusive chat on talkSPORT Breakfast.
“I was the heavy underdog, people thought I was going to get smashed to pieces, and he was the unified champion for like 11 years and at some point thought he was unbeatable, but I went over to Germany and beat him.
“In this game it’s not about how much better somebody is than the other person, a lot of it has to do with natural stuff, like age, and at 38-years old you are on the decline, whether you want to admit it or not.
“If you look at Cristiano Ronaldo, he’s 37 years old, he’s had the best doctors, the best physiotherapists, he’s lived like an egg in Mr Kipling’s cake.
“But even Ronaldo is on the slide now, so even someone who has looked after himself like that, it catches up to you… so imagine a boxer who has been punched to pieces for the last 20 years.
“The age factor will not wait for anybody, no matter how you’ve lived.
“Whether you’ve never had a drink in your life, if you’ve never run on any hard surfaces, no matter who you are, age will get you eventually.”
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