Cristiano Ronaldo reached another milestone in his legendary career by netting his 900th goal during Portugal’s UEFA Nations League clash with Croatia.
Portugal secured a 2-1 victory over Croatia, with Cristiano Ronaldo’s milestone goal and Diogo Dalot’s early strike helping them edge past their opponents despite Dalot’s own-goal reducing the lead just before halftime.
The iconic forward, now 39 years old, added to Diogo Dalot’s early seventh-minute strike by scoring Portugal’s second of the night.
Ronaldo clinically finished Nuno Mendes’ perfectly weighted cross to bring his international tally to 131 goals and an astonishing 900 goals in total throughout his career.
The match took place at Estadio da Luz on Thursday, where Ronaldo, visibly emotional after his goal, celebrated his achievement in front of a passionate home crowd.
Though Ronaldo’s goal gave Portugal a commanding lead, Croatia clawed one back when Dalot inadvertently scored an own goal just before halftime.
Despite the setback, Portugal secured a hard-fought result.
Ronaldo’s name is already etched in history as one of football’s greatest players.
With an illustrious career that includes stints at Manchester United, Real Madrid, Juventus, and currently Al-Nassr, the Portuguese star has won every major trophy available to him, with the exception of the FIFA World Cup.
Even as he approaches 40, Ronaldo continues to prove his value, both on the international stage and at the club level.
Since his move to Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr in early 2023, Ronaldo has delivered remarkable performances, scoring 68 goals in 74 appearances across all competitions.
Earlier in the year, he helped guide Portugal to the Euro 2024 quarter-finals, showing his ability to perform at the highest level even as he nears the twilight of his career.
Looking ahead, Portugal faces Scotland in their next Nations League fixture on Sunday.
Whether national team coach Roberto Martinez will choose to rest Ronaldo or start the veteran star remains to be seen, but his contributions to both club and country continue to defy expectations.
