On Tuesday evening, Cristiano Ronaldo was honoured at the 2022 Gala Quinas de Ouro for his achievements with Portugal's national team.To honour his 117 goals on international duty, the Manchester United superstar was named the Best Scorer at the annual awards ceremony hosted by the Portuguese Football Federation.After collecting the accolade, Ronaldo gave a short speech in which he stated his intent to play for Portugal at Euro 2024 - when he will 39 years of age.
Ronaldo wants to play at Euro 2024
“I am proud to receive an award of this magnitude,†the five-time Ballon d'Or winner said. “I never thought that, one day, I could achieve it.
“I thank everyone who was important in my career. It has been a long road, but I would like to say that my road is not over yet.
“I hope to be a part of the Federation for a few more years. I still feel motivated, my ambition is high. My path in the national team is not over. We have many quality youngsters.
“I will be at the World Cup, and I want to be at the European [Championship in 2024].â€
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 08: Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United in action during the UEFA Europa League group E match between Manchester United and Real Sociedad at Old Trafford on September 08, 2022 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Ronaldo sounds as driven as ever, but there's a case to be made that he should step aside after the 2022 World Cup to allow Portugal's array of talented youngsters to thrive.
Rafael Leao, Joao Felix, Goncalo Ramos and Pedro Neto are just some members of the country's exciting new generation who're currently waiting in the wings.
And it seems a camera operator at the Gala Quinas de Ouro wanted to make it clear that Ronaldo should consider his position with the national team for the greater good.
After scooping an award himself, Futsal legend Ricardinho spoke about how he selflessly allowed younger players to flourish.
ANTWERPEN, BELGIUM - FEBRUARY 1: Ricardinho of Portugal celebrates his goal during the Futsal Euro 2014 match between Portugal and Russia at Lotto Arena on February 1, 2014 in Antwerpen, Belgium. (Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images for UEFA)
He said, per Goal: “I stepped down from the national team so the younger generation could take over and today I’m sure it was the right decision.â€
As Ricardinho made the point, the camera panned to Ronaldo - and the timing just seemed too perfect to be merely a coincidence.
Check out the footage from the awards ceremony..
Video: Was Ronaldo cheekily trolled by cameraperson?
As one football fan wrote on a Reddit post containing the video, it really was some Arrested Development-like camera work.
Of course, there is a chance the operator was just eager to get a shot of arguably the most famous sportsperson on the planet during Ricardinho's speech.
But as we stated previously, the sequence of events just feels too well executed to be an accident...