‘Almost impossible’: Russian UFC champion Nurmagomedov hails football icon Ronaldo again as he salutes his friend's staying power

Khabib Nurmagomedov has been called a "fanboy" after saluting Cristiano Ronaldo again on social media, hailing the boxing and MMA fan after he scored twice for Juventus as the reigning champions won 4-0 in Serie A at the weekend.

The superstars have been mutual admirers since at least February 2018, when Nurmagomedov and Ronaldo sat on a sofa together holding a shirt bearing the lightweight king's name and the striker's number, seven, on the back.

Ronaldo called the Dagestani "my brother" before his long-awaited return against Justin Gaethje in October, correctly predicting that Nurmagomedov would "of course" win on "Fight Island" in Abu Dhabi.

Now Nurmagomedov has lauded Ronaldo's longevity after the Juve talisman inspired his side to a comfortable victory at Parma on Saturday, scoring either side of half-time to move clear at the top of the scoring charts in Italy.

"Fifteen years at the top," Nurmagomedov told his Instagram following of more than 26 million, sharing a post by Ronaldo celebrating his triumph. "Almost impossible."

The Portugal captain has arguably been performing at the pinnacle of his sport for even longer than that, joining Premier League giants Manchester United and making his debut for his country in 2003.

"Good to get back to victories and happy to help the team win with two goals," he wrote, shortly before his weekend became even more glorious as he was announced as the winner of career-long achievement award the Golden Foot.

The honor means that Ronaldo will be immortalized on a Champion Promenade in Monaco. "I am truly humbled and want to thank the fans all over the world for having voted for me," he added.

Aside from football, Ronaldo has repeatedly revealed his love of combat sports, appearing in a feature on DAZN with Kazakh boxing star Gennady Golovkin last week.

Nurmagomedov also praised Real Madrid hotshot Karim Benzema, who opened the scoring in the Spanish side's 3-1 win at Eibar yesterday, as the "best".

The fighter was in the stands to watch Ronaldo help Juventus win at Lokomotiv Moscow in the Champions League last year, and is said to support Los Blancos alongside his hometown club, Anzhi Makhachkala.