LISBON, May 15 (Reuters) - Cristiano Ronaldo is 41, but Portugal coach Roberto Martinez said age is only a number and that his captain is judged on current form and by the same standards as everyone else.
Ronaldo could play in a sixth World Cup with this year's tournament in North America set to begin in less than a month, a staggering possibility even for a player who has twisted football’s record books into new shapes.
Yet Martinez, speaking to Reuters in Lisbon on Thursday, insisted Portugal were not carrying a monument to past glory.
"We manage the Cristiano Ronaldo that plays for the national team trying to get into the squad for 2026, not the iconic figure," Martinez said.
The debate in Portugal is less whether Ronaldo, the record scorer in international football with 143 goals, belongs in the squad and more what his role should be when World Cup margins are razor-thin.
For Martinez, the calculation is simple. Ronaldo the player is assessed on what he does in training and for the team.
"Age is only a number," Martinez said. "Certainly in the national team we can measure exactly what's happening on the day, and you make the decisions for the next day. You never look any longer than the next day."
HOW TO USE RONALDO?
On the question of how to use Ronaldo at a World Cup where matches swing on substitutions, tactical shifts and games that stretch into extra time and penalties, Martinez argued modern football has moved past treating the starting lineup as the only measure of status.
"Now we've got five substitutions. It's almost like we've got a starting team and a finishing team. There is no distinction," he said. "There are different roles and Cristiano has always accepted his role."
The question of whether Ronaldo would accept a reduced role has lingered since the 2022 World Cup, when then-coach Fernando Santos benched him against Switzerland after the final group match against South Korea.
Martinez declined to draw direct parallels between tournaments, saying form, style and context change. But he stressed that Ronaldo’s place, like everyone else’s, rests on merit.
"All the players are in the same space in the national team where when they play well, when they execute their role well to help the team to win, they have a better chance to play than when they don't do it. It's as simple as that," he said.
Martinez said Ronaldo is far more than a ceremonial presence. He pointed to 25 goals in 30 Portugal appearances under his management, a better goals-per-game ratio than under any of Ronaldo’s previous national-team coaches, and said his value also shows up in details that raw numbers miss.
"He is fantastic at those movements, those runs, opening spaces, splitting centre halves," Martinez said.
"He's been disciplined to be in the right positions, always executing the attacking patterns that we have. And that gives him opportunities to score as he's done, but the opportunity of opening space for our players."
'ELITE BRAIN'
Martinez insisted age should not be the starting point of any discussion about Ronaldo, but rather data, training, attitude and tactical fit.
He said Ronaldo’s longevity is underpinned not only by physical gifts, but by "that elite brain" and a daily pursuit of improvement.
What surprised him most after taking charge was not the aura of Ronaldo, but the appetite.
"Somebody that has won everything has the hunger of somebody that hasn't won a trophy yet," Martinez said.
That hunger, he added, had made Ronaldo "a very important figure in the dressing room, as a captain, as somebody that represents what it means to play for the national team".
Martinez knows the noise will never fade. He said "every taxi driver" has an opinion about Ronaldo, even if they have not watched him recently.
But his job, he said, is to examine the evidence and pick the team.
"The players are always on the pitch on merit," Martinez said. "And when the environment shows you otherwise, it's a natural selection."
(Reporting by Fernando KallasEditing by Toby Davis)
