- Saturday, April 20, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
PORTUGUESE football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo on Wednesday (1) broke the all-time international goal-scoring record after netting his 110th in a World Cup-qualification match against the Republic of Ireland in Faro, Portugal. The 36-year-old captain of his side also scored a second in the match to give his country a dramatic 2-1 win. He eclipsed in the process Iran’s Ali Daei who scored 109 times in 149 international matches. Ronaldo now has 111 goals in 180 international outings.
Portugal now top Group A of the qualifying round with three wins from four games and one draw and a point tally of 10. Serbia are ranked second with seven points but they have played a game less than Portugal. The winners of the group automatically qualify for the quadrennial show in Qatar next year while the runners-up go into the playoffs.
Ronaldo, who was in great form at the Euro earlier this year but failed to give his side the trophy, recently returned to Juventus from Manchester United. He told Sky Sports after the game that he was happy not just because he broke the record but for the special moment that his side had. “I have to appreciate what the team did, we believed until the end. I’m so glad,” he said.
Ronaldo did not have a good beginning to the game as he missed a penalty in the 15th minute. Portugal also fell behind as John Egan gave Ireland a lead at the half time. But the ace player stored it for the last minutes. He equalised in the 89th minute with his record-breaking goal and then scored the winner in the sixth minute of added time.
