Cristiano Ronaldo broke a new record yesterday, becoming the sole all-time topscorer in World Cup Qualifying history. It was a highly anticipated game, seeing as he had already equalled the record after having scored against Hungary in the international break in September.
This time around he failed to convert from the spot against Ireland, and all eyes were on him yesterday, looking to see if he could redeem himself as Portugal faced Hungary to try and secure their ticket for the 2026 World Cup.
They started off on the wrong foot, conceding in the eighth minute of the game from a corner. On the other hand, Portugal’s captain seemed unfaced as he pushed the team to step up and press higher up the field. This led to his first goal, as Nélson Semedo assisted Cristiano Ronaldo, who tapped in the equalizer with his weaker foot. This was Cristiano’s 40th goal in World Cup Qualifying, which made him break the previous record.
Even though his personal goal was finished, the Portuguese captain kept on knocking on the door and scored again in the first half’s third minute of added time, blasting home a volley thanks to Nuno Mendes’s cross.
In the second half, he still had the same hunger and even got close to completing his hat-trick, but it wasn’t meant to be, as he was subbed off in the 79th minute for Gonçalo Ramos. Hungary then went on to break the Portuguese fans’ hearts, equalizing in the 91st minute and making Portugal have to wait another month to be able to book their tickets to the U.S.A. next year.
This made Cristiano Ronaldo’s historic night feel bittersweet in the end, but his record should still be celebrated, seeing as it might never be broken again and Portugal still have a healthy five-point lead in their respective group.
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