Cristiano Ronaldo set a new record for most goals scored by an international player with 125, as Portugal beat Slovakia 3-2 to clinch a spot in the Euro 2024 tournament.
The forward keeps making history for his country and was recognized before the game for reaching the milestone of 200 appearances for his country in international competition.
At the Estadio do Dragao, Goncalo Ramos gave Roberto Martinez’s team the lead after 18 minutes, and then 11 minutes later, Cristiano Ronaldo scored his first goal from the penalty spot to take the lead.
The goal put the 38-year-old player two goals ahead of Iran’s Ali Daei in the all-time international scoring record, which he first reached in June 2021 following a pair of goals scored against the Republic of Ireland that put him two goals ahead of Ali Daei.
Deep into the second half, David Hancko of Slovakia scored the first goal of EURO qualifying against Portugal. Shortly after that, Cristiano Ronaldo scored his second goal for Portugal by tapping in a low cross from Bruno Fernandes, who was a previous teammate of Ronaldo’s at Manchester United.
Cristiano Ronaldo was honoured in his first interntional appearance on home soil since recording his record 200th cap
Ronaldo grabbed the first of his two goals from the spot in the first half against Slovakia
As Portugal strolled into the Euro 2024 tournament, Roberto Martinez kept his perfect record intact as head coach.
On a rainy night in Porto, the away team’s Stanislav Lobotka scored the game-winning goal for his team. However, the night belonged to Portugal as they successfully punched their ticket to the championship that will take place the following summer.
Following his lackluster performance at the 2022 World Cup and subsequent relocation to the Saudi Pro League, it appeared as though Ronaldo had bid farewell to the international scene.
This year, he has played for his country six times and has already scored seven goals for them. Of his 125 career goals, 73 of them have been scored after he turned 30.
Martinez has been successful in all seven of his matches as manager since he took over in January. On Monday, they will play against Bosnia and Herzegovina with the goal of improving that record.
