5 ways Cristiano Ronaldo can prolong his career at the top

#2 Reduction in play time

Perhaps Ronaldo needs to embrace being substituted a little more?

Ever since he arrived at the Bernabeu in 2009, Ronaldo has been Real Madrid’s key man, and essentially, all the success they’ve achieved since likely wouldn’t have been possible without him.

Sure, he’s had a couple of bad patches and injuries over the years, but generally, he’s been consistent and fantastic. Unfortunately, for the older Ronaldo, being such a key man might start to pull him down anytime soon, if it hasn't already.

Last season saw Ronaldo play a total of 46 games, and while it was the lowest total he’s hit since being in Madrid (outside of his debut season), it’s still a hell of a lot of football to be playing, particularly when you’re the kind of player – as Ronaldo is – to throw fits when you’re substituted, even late on in the game.

While he’s still the key to any sort of success for Real Madrid, for the good of their star player, it could be time for a change.

Firstly Ronaldo ought to embrace the idea of resting even when he’s fully fit. Real have enough easy games in La Liga – and enough firepower even without Ronaldo – to afford to give their star man a break, and obviously a rested and fresh Ronaldo would be a nightmare for the likes of Barcelona and Atletico Madrid – real threats to Real’s dominance – to face off against.

And he should also not worry so much about being substituted. Sure, it’d probably mean that he’d end up plundering fewer goals overall, but does that really matter at this point?

Everyone knows he’s one of the all-time greats. If Zinedine Zidane feels like the game is won, then he should take Ronaldo off to save his ageing star for the next big game. It only makes sense.