"I can’t believe it" - Gary Neville labels Cristiano Ronaldo 'illegal' after he finds out incredible statistic about Portugal superstar
Former Manchester United legend Gary Neville called Cristiano Ronaldo 'illegal' after finding out that the Portuguese talisman has scored 895 goals in his career. The two played together during the veteran forward's time at Old Trafford.
Portugal qualified for the Round of 16 of Euro 2024 following their convincing 3-0 win against Turkey on Saturday, June 22. Bernardo Silva (21'), an own goal by Samet Akaydin (28'), and Bruno Fernandes (55') sealed the victory for the 2016 Euro winners.
While Ronaldo didn't find his name on the scoresheet, he has the most assists (8) in Euro history. His tally of assists reached eight following his pass to Fernandes for Portugal's third goal.
The 39-year-old also has 130 goals to his name in 208 appearances for Portugal, as he's the all-time top scorer in international football. After learning that Ronaldo has scored 895 career goals for club and country, the former Manchester United right-back said (via Mirror):
"I can't believe it... 895 goals. I mean, that is, it's not right, that. I mean, I knew he'd scored a few goals, but, honestly. His professionalism, he's never taken a chance once at any point in his career with his preparation.
"He's a phenomenon and one of the greatest we'll ever see. His dedication, his determination to win is unbelievable, and 895 goals is bordering on illegal!"
Neville and Ronaldo shared the pitch 137 times at Manchester United, combining for three goals.
Meanwhile, Portugal play their last Euro 2024 group-stage match against Georgia on Wednesday, June 26.
Cristiano Ronaldo clicked a picture with a pitch invader
A total of six incidents of pitch invasion were reported during and after Portugal's game against Turkey. A young pitch invader, who managed to evade security and meet Ronaldo, was able to get a selfie clicked with him.
Several images and video of the incident surfaced, showing the young boy running towards the 39-year-old. The former Real Madrid man didn't appear to mind the invasion and obliged the fan with a picture.
However, he seemed irked when another pitch invader tried the same trick. According to talkSPORT, a total of six incidents of pitch invasion were reported. Here's what former Aston Villa striker Dean Ashton said about the incidents:
"I think he handles it brilliantly because it must be scary, to be honest, to have a supporter run on, you don't know what they've got with them and we've seen it in other sports down the years."
Ashton added that it's a matter of security concern that multiple incidents of pitch invasion took place post the second half. He has urged for security to be heightened so that such shenanigans become less frequent.