Cristiano Ronaldo: 'My dream is to retire at Real Madrid'

The 30-year-old has been repeatedly linked with a move back to Manchester United, a big-money switch to Paris Saint-Germain and even a spell in MLS, but he has insisted that he wants to stay at the Bernabeu for the long term.

Ronaldo, whose contract runs until 2018, has insisted that it is his dream to retire at Madrid and believes that because he looks after his body, he could play for another five or six years at the club.

“My dream is to retire at Real Madrid,” he told Marca. “If you take care of yourself, you can play until you are 40.

“I want to continue for five or six more years. I plan to continue [with the same] games and goals average. I feel good and useful at Madrid, I want to keep winning here.”

Ronaldo was awarded his fourth Golden Shoe this week - the trophy given to the top goalscorer in all European leagues - with no other player having won it on as many occasions.

And former Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti recently said he would be surprised if Ronaldo were to leave the Bernabeu for another club.

"He etched his name into the record books at Real Madrid the other day when he equalled Raul's goalscoring record," Ancelotti told Le Parisien.

[RELATED: Ancelotti: Ronaldo will finish his career at Real Madrid]

"I cannot imagine him leaving Real Madrid. I think he will stay at Madrid until the end of his career. Everybody at the club loves him."

It really makes no sense for Ronaldo to want to leave Madrid, unless he particularly wants a completely different lifestyle by moving to the USA. He has everything he could possibly want at the Bernabeu and is breaking every record going. He has already established himself as a true legend at the club and it would be fitting for him to play out his career in front of the Madrid fans. It is increasingly rare for even the top players to retire at their chosen club, but Ronaldo could be afforded that luxury for all that he has achieved. Given his astonishing talent and fitness, there really should be nothing preventing him from fulfilling his wish and playing for Madrid for another six years.