Will Cristiano Ronaldo play at the Club World Cup? | OneFootball

One of the biggest talking points of the summer will be the FIFA Club World Cup, already being mentioned as a priority competition for many clubs who will be competing. With all eyes situated on the competition, it would be foolish to not assume a player like Cristiano Ronaldo will want to be involved in some capacity.

Al Nassr missed their chance to qualify for the Club World Cup back in 2023/24 season, being knocked out of the AFC Champions League in the quarter-finals by Al Ain, thus blocking Ronaldo’s pathway to the competition.

However, with FIFA now allowing clubs to sign and resign players earlier than usual, a new pathway has opened for the Portuguese talisman. Ronaldo could sign a short-term contract for a club playing in the Club World Cup, with both Manchester City and Chelsea looking like potential opportunities.

Manchester City could become an option for Ronaldo with Erling Haaland currently out injured. Whilst Guardiola has said his Norwegian goal machine should hopefully be available by time the Club World Cup kicks off in June, his injury status could open the door for a short-term CR7 move.

Haaland is averaging the fewest touches per 90 of any Manchester City this season (with 500+ minutes) with 22.84 touches per 90, the next lowest being Ederson with 39.93 touches per 90.

Manchester City average the highest possession in the Premier League per game with 61.4% per game, also averaging 2.53 big chances created per 90 (third in the Premier League for this metric) and averaging 16.06 shots per game (third in the Premier League for this metric).

If Haaland is going to miss out on the Club World Cup, Manchester City could do much worse than bringing in an effective penalty box striker who has 791 club goals scored in his career, with a further 136 in his international career.

Another option for Ronaldo could be Chelsea, who currently find themselves 6th in the Premier League, which could make the Club World Cup even more crucial to the success of their season and the future of Enzo Maresca.

Much like Manchester City, Chelsea’s creative metrics stand out nicely, averaging 2.56 big chances created per 90 (ranking second for this metric in the Premier League) and averaging 16.5 shots per 90 (also ranking second for this metric).

However, Chelsea also have the most big chances missed this season, with a total of 73 across the 2024/25 campaign. Nicolas Jackson has played his hand in this, missing 18 big chances this season and having a 44.44% shooting accuracy.

The Blues are clearly looking to add another striker in the summer to battle out with Jackson next season, with the likes of Liam Delap, Victor Osimhen and Viktor Gyokeres all on the supposed shortlist. However, could Ronaldo be a short-term option to add a clinical finisher and some aerial threat in the box for the Club World Cup?

Along with the two Premier League clubs, other options could arise for Ronaldo. Both Inter Milan and Juventus could make a move for the striker on a short-term deal, especially having played for Juventus already. Saudi Pro League side Al Ahly are also competing, which could become an option if others don’t quite work out.

It will be interesting to see whether the 40-year-old finds himself a way to the Club World Cup this summer, but it is hard to imagine no team taking the chance to bring in such a high profile name, even for a short period of time, not only for footballing reasons but also financial reasons (shirt sales!).