In rather surprising news, Cristiano Ronaldo has barely scraped into the top 50 of the world’s most valuable footballers.

Ronaldo came in at number 49 on the list, behind the likes of Anthony Martial of Manchester United and Nicolas Otamendi of Man City, while he is one place above Fabinho of Monaco.

Neymar came out on top of the list of the most valuable footballers, which was named by the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) Football Observatory. Lionel Messi came in second, with Tottenham star Harry Kane third.

Neymar of PSG was given an estimated value of €213 million, while Messi is rated at €202.2 million and Kane at €194.7 million.

Embed from Getty Images

Other players in the top ten include Dele Alli (€171.3 million), Kevin De Bruyne (€167.3 million), Romelu Lukaku (€164.8 million) and Paul Pogba (€147.5 million).

Ronaldo’s estimated transfer value

Ronaldo is valued at a “mere” €80.4 million, according to the study. Factors the study takes into account include age, position, contract duration, performance and international status.

The list has not changed drastically from last year. Several out of the top ten from last season have remained in the top ten, while Luis Suarez and Eden Hazard are out of the top ten but remain in the top 20.

Factors that work against Ronaldo at this point in time are his age as well as his form – he has surprisingly not been his usual best for Real this season and has only managed to score four goals from 13 La Liga matches; a record that leaves him a distant 80/1 with NetBet Sport to claim top goalscorer this season.

Age catching up with Cristiano?

Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s fierce rival Messi has been brilliant so far this season as Barcelona seemingly look destined to win the La Liga. Ronaldo won the Ballon d’Or award last season as he played an instrumental role as Los Blancos went on to win La Liga and the Uefa Champions League. His form this season, however, suggests he could now have peaked.

Embed from Getty Images

This is indeed major news in the world of football as Ronaldo has been a player who has dominated headlines for more than ten years now and is held by most as being one of the greatest footballers of all time.

At 32 years of age, Ronaldo is certainly past the age at which most players are able to shine. He is, however, not your average player and one of the hardest-working elite athletes, so this will be a major source of disappointment for him.

Meanwhile, he will captain Portugal at this year’s World Cup, which could well be his last. Knowing Ronaldo and his passion for the game, however, if he is able to continue to perform decently for the next four years, it would not be surprising to see him turn out for his country during the 2022 World Cup aged 37.