How long will Ronaldo continue?

Manchester United legend Cristiano Ronaldo has signed a new contract with Al-Nassr, extending his remarkably long and successful career even further.

Ronaldo will be 42 by the time his fresh deal in Saudi Arabia expires and the news got us thinking about other former Reds who have pushed the boundaries of longevity.

Ryan Giggs was the first name that came to mind, with our all-time record appearance maker matching Ronaldo’s 23 years as a professional.

Giggs made his debut for the Reds in May 1991, aged 17, and was a first-team regular right up until the summer of 2014.

The Wales winger made his 963rd and final United appearance six months after his 40th birthday, becoming our oldest Premier League outfield player.

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He was, however, one month and 22 days younger than Edwin van der Sar when he kept goal in the 2011 Champions League final.

The Dutchman retired immediately after our defeat to Barcelona but other Reds have kept on playing well into their forties after leaving the club.

Teddy Sheringham was, in football terms, already a distinguished veteran when helping United to the Treble in 1999 but the forward was still scoring in the top-flight for West Ham seven years later – indeed, he still holds the record for the Premier League’s most senior scorer.

He finally called time on his career in 2008, aged 42, after a season with Colchester United in the Championship.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic (40) and Gordon Strachan (40) featured for AC Milan and Coventry City respectively in their fifth decade, while goalkeepers have of course traditionally been more durable in this sense.

Ben Foster played his final match for Wrexham four months after his 40th birthday and Jim Leighton was 41 when he appeared in the 2000 Scottish Cup final with Aberdeen.

All in this list pale in comparison to Billy Meredith, however.

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The Welsh wizard, considered one of football’s earliest superstars, may already have been considered ‘old’ when he joined United as a 31-year-old in 1906, after serving a season-long ban for attempting to bribe an opposition player.

He became part of United’s first great side, winning two titles and the FA Cup before the outbreak of the First World War, and the subsequent suspension of league football, seemingly ended his career.

But amazingly, Meredith – now 45 – was still part of the squad when the First Division returned for the 1919/20 campaign.

On the final day of the following season, he set a club landmark that will surely never be broken, appearing against Derby at the age of 46 years and 281 days old, and he even had another couple of terms left him, returning to Manchester City and playing until a couple of months before his 50th birthday.

Will Ronaldo keep going for that long? We wouldn’t put it past him…

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