Khabib pays tribute to close friend Ronaldo for '15 years on top' in football

Khabib Nurmagomedov has praised Cristiano Ronaldo for his longevity at the elite level of football in a social media tribute.

The retired UFC star is a big football fan as well as a huge admirer of Real Madrid - while he also supports Liverpool, Anzhi Makhachkala and Galatasaray at club level.

The Russian has been photographed on several occasions with the Portuguese football star, who is also a fan of UFC and has followed Khabib's career to date.

And after Ronaldo scored twice for Juventus against Parma on Saturday, Khabib said: '15 years at the top. Almost impossible' on his Instagram story next to an image of the footballer.

Ronaldo was recently accoladed for his long-term contribution to football after he was awarded the Golden Foot Award over the weekend.

The award is given to outstanding players over the age of 28, with previous winners including Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto'o and Ronaldinho.

Barcelona captain Lionel Messi, who formed a rivalry with Ronaldo when the Portuguese star was playing in Spain for Real, has not yet been offered the award.

Earlier this year, Ronaldo paid tribute to Khabib after the Russian beat Justin Gaethje in UFC 254 in October, which turned out to be the 32-year-old's final fight of his career.

The footballer took an image of Khabib celebrating his victory over Gaethje and posted on Instagram with the caption: 'Congrats bro! Your father is proud of you'.

Khabib's father and long-term trainer Abdulmanap died in July after contracting coronavirus and his death was a major reason why the Russian retired after the Gaethje encounter.

Over the weekend, UFC legend Khabib also paid tribute to Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema on social media after he opened the scoring in Los Blancos' 3-1 win at Eibar on Sunday.

The result moved Real level on points with city rivals Atletico and Khabib called the Frenchman 'the best' on his Instagram story.