Cristiano Ronaldo surpasses Pelé's goal record
With his two goals on Sunday against Udinese, Cristiano Ronaldo reached 758 official goals in the First Division. According to all reliable sources, he surpassed Pelé's 757 goals. There are certain differences in the number of goals scored by various players, especially those from the past, among the different private organizations (FIFA does not have its own statistics, it buys this type of service from entities or individuals). However, in this case, it is clear: Cristiano's 758 goals are indisputable and all filmed. There is also no doubt that Pelé's goals, recognized in officially recognized tournaments, are 757. So, in this regard, Cristiano surpassed Pelé.
This article does not intend to praise or belittle either player, but rather to establish an analysis of what this record means. Being among the top two, three, or five in the world ranking in such a relevant aspect as goals is an exceptional achievement, considering that tens of millions of people have played soccer. And surpassing Pelé in this regard – or in any regard – is absolutely remarkable. O Rei was the very essence of soccer, the perfect player, the one who could not be criticized for lacking a strong left leg, heading ability, or dribbling skills. He had it all. He was a technical prodigy, a mix of fantasy and objectivity, the useful and the beautiful. And if opponents played rough, he could also dish it out. No one could outdo him. He was complete. And as his teammate Pepe recalled: "He never played poorly, even on the days when he didn't shine, he was still the best among us." In the days of the 4-4-2 formation, he played as a second striker, not as a number 10 as his jersey suggested. One day he was given the number 10 by chance at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, and since he dazzled, it became his immovable number. But he was a true forward, not just a striker who stayed in the penalty area, but rather one who entered the area by playing one-twos.
Cristiano, ambitious
Ronaldo is a pure striker, initially playing on the wings, almost like a winger; since his time at Real Madrid, he has become an inside forward. And lately, he has been a poacher, almost disconnected from the rest of the team, waiting for each ball to come his way to shoot on goal, solely focused on finishing. He is an extraordinary header and can shoot equally well with both feet, he is very clever in his movements, incredibly ambitious for goals like no one else we have ever seen, incredibly focused on the game, a super athlete, an ultra-professional, treating his body and career as a precious science. He is not skillful and does not possess magic; he does extraordinarily well the bare minimum from a technical standpoint. Every player needs to be surrounded by a good team, and Cristiano Ronaldo even more so because he does not participate in the team's build-up play. As a goalscorer, he might surpass Pelé's numbers, but as a player, he is far behind.
Even in terms of averages, CR7 will never equal him: the Brazilian needed 223 fewer games to score his 757 goals, with an average of 0.93 compared to Cristiano's 0.73. Let's clarify: the famous 1,300 goals by Pelé do not exist. There were 1,283, but including friendlies, exhibition matches, tribute matches, goals in the army, etc.
Numbers in perspective
However, let's put numbers and scenarios into perspective. Cristiano has scored his 758 goals at the highest possible level, in the leagues of England, Spain, and Italy (the first five were in the Portuguese league). There is no higher level. And as for international goals, his goals have come in European competitions at times when Europe has clearly surpassed South America.
It is important to emphasize that every career is different. Di Stéfano reached 512 goals, and even though he was a center forward, it must be acknowledged that he roamed the entire field, not just waiting for the ball to be passed high up. He dropped deep, marked opponents, built up play, and finished. Romario reached 748 goals (19 in the second division); however, it is worth noting that 272 of those goals were scored in state championships, in the Campeonato Carioca, which is not the highest expression of Brazilian football; that would be the Brasileirão. The same applies to Pelé: 467 of his goals were scored in the Campeonato Paulista, which clearly did not have the excellence of other tournaments. At that time, there was no national championship in Brazil that brought together all the great teams from Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Belo Horizonte, Porto Alegre, Recife, or Bahia, as there is today. There were many small clubs, some almost amateur, and attacking with five players while defending with three was the norm. Santos was a machine with players like Dorval, Mengalvio, Coutinho, Pelé, and Pepe; the other teams, except Palmeiras, Corinthians, and São Paulo FC, were much inferior. It would be like placing Liverpool in the Welsh league today. Let's take one of Pelé's best years as an example: 1959 when he was the top scorer in the state championship with 45 goals. Santos beat Ponte Preta 12-1, América Paulista 8-0, XV de Jaú 8-2, Jabaquara 7-0, Noroeste 6-1, Portuguesa Santista 6-1, Comercial 6-2, and Portuguesa de Desportos 5-0 and 5-1... Santos scored 155 goals in that tournament, an incredible number. He also scored many goals against teams like Ypiranga, Taubaté, XV de Piracicaba, São Bento, Linense, Ferroviaria... Today, many make fun when someone scores against Granada, Eibar, Sassuolo, or Brighton.
O Rei also scored 37 goals for the Cosmos in a North American league inferior to today's. However, this does not diminish his qualities at all because in international competitions, he scored against Boca Juniors, Peñarol, Milan, Benfica, and others. But this describes who he scored hundreds of official goals against. Not to mention that the game was much slower and had fewer goals scored back then.
It is worth pointing out that Cristiano has scored the astronomical number of 170 penalties in his career, while Pelé has only taken a handful, not because he did not know how to take them, but because Cristiano has spent twelve years at clubs like Real Madrid and Juventus, who are awarded tons of penalties.
In terms of goal numbers, millions of dollars, and followers on Instagram, Ronaldo surpasses Pelé, but as a footballer, it is impossible. Not even in a century. (O)