Cristiano Ronaldo added another extraordinary achievement to his resume by scoring his 100th goal for Portugal on Tuesday.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner completed his century with a majestic free kick in Portugal’s 2-0 victory over Sweden in the Nations League.
He then added a second goal to get even closer to the record for the top international scorer of all time.
Ronaldo consolidated his legacy many years ago, but it is still extraordinary to see him reach new heights.
He has scored 48 goals in 47 international games since he turned 30. Think about that for a second.
Ronaldo has extended his lead over Argentina’s Lionel Messi to 31 international goals and only Ali Daei of Iran has scored more international goals than the Juventus star.
We have taken a look at the top 25 international scorers in history.
T23. – Ronaldo (Brazil), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden), Ahmed Radhi (Iraq): 62 goals
The trio scored 62 international goals, although 2002 World Cup winner Ronaldo has the best goal-per-game ratio (0.63).
22. Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast): 65 goals
Drogba is Ivory Coast’s all-time top scorer with 65 goals.
T19. Gerd Muller (West Germany), Carlos Ruiz (Guatemala), Robbie Keane (Republic of Ireland): 68 goals
Muller’s return of 68 goals in 62 games is brilliant. He helped his country win the World Cup in 1974.
T15. Lionel Messi (Argentina), Piyapong Pue-on (Thailand), Stern John (Trinidad and Tobago), Hossam Hassan (Egypt): 70 goals
Messi is behind Ronaldo and he has a lot to do.
T11. Miroslav Klose (Germany), Kinnah Phiri (Malawi), Majed Abdullah (Saudi Arabia), Kiatisuk Senamuang (Thailand): 71 goals
The all-time record scorer in World Cup history, Klose enjoyed an incredible international career that he capped off by winning the tournament in 2014.
10. Sunil Chhetri (India): 72 goals
Chhetri, 36, is the second top international scorer in action.
T7. Sandor Kocsis (Hungary), Kunishige Kamamoto (Japan), Bashar Abdullah (Kuwait): 75 goals
Kocsis finished his international career with 75 goals in 68 games.
6. Pele (Brazil): 77 goals
Brazil’s all-time top scorer and the youngest scorer in a World Cup final, Pelé’s international résumé speaks for itself.
5. Hussein Saeed (Iraq): 78 goals
Saeed helped Iraq win the Arabian Gulf Cup in 1979 and 1984 and led them to a gold medal at the 1982 Asian Games.
4. Godfrey Chitalu (Zambia): 79 goals
Chitalu finished runner-up with Zambia at the 1974 African Cup of Nations and was named Zambian Footballer of the Year five times.
3. Ferenc Puskas (Hungary): 84 goals
Former Real Madrid star Puskas was a prolific forward who scored 84 goals in 85 appearances for Hungary.
He was named best player at the 1954 World Cup after leading Hungary to the final.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal): 101 goals
Ronaldo tripled with his double against Sweden and is now just eight goals away from tying the record.
1. Ali Daei (Iran): 109 goals
Daei leads the way with 109 goals, which occurred during an international career that spanned from 1993 to 2006.
But beware, Ali, Ronaldo is coming.
News Now – Sports News
.
