“More hattricks in last 3 weeks than Messi in last 3 years” – Fans go wild as Cristiano Ronaldo bags first-half hat-trick for Al-Nassr against Damac
Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo bagged yet another hat-trick for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Saturday (February 25) to send fans into a meltdown on social media.
The Riyadh-based outfit went into today's game against seventh-placed Damac with the opportunity to leapfrog league leaders Al-Ittihad in the standings.
Ronaldo's brilliant month continued as he scored a sublime first-half hat-trick. He broke the deadlock in the 18th minute by coolly dispatching his penalty past Damac goalkeeper Moustapha Zeghba. He added a second five minutes later and then completed his hat-trick in the 44th minute, following a brilliant counter-attack.
Al-Nassr went 3-0 up at the break and looked set to secure all three points to establish their lead at the top of the Saudi Pro League.
Fans will be buoyed by Cristiano Ronaldo's goal record for his new club. The Portuguese has been involved in each of his side's last ten goals, scoring eight and providing two assists in the last four games.
Ronaldo has now scored two hat-tricks in the last three weeks and fans took to Twitter to celebrate the 38-year-old's achievement, with some comparing his form to eternal rival Lionel Messi's.
"CRISTIANO RONALDO HAS MORE HATTRICKS IN THE LAST 3 WEEKS THAN MESSI IN THE LAST 3 YEARS"
While Ronaldo is enjoying a stellar run of form, PSG superstar Messi has also excelled this season compared to his first in the French capital.
The former Barcelona man has been involved in 21 goal in 19 appearances in Ligue 1 this season and looks likely to secure another league title for Les Parisiens. Moreover, the Argentine international 'completed football' by winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup in December.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi: Who has scored more career hat-tricks?
Cristiano Ronaldo scored his second hat-trick of 2023 after bagging a first-half treble against Damac.
Many fans were quick to point out that Lionel Messi has failed to score more than this in the last three years. Let's take a look at which legend has accumulated more hat-tricks in their career:
Ronaldo now has a career total of 62 hat-tricks. At club level, he has a total of 52, with eight coming in the Champions League. He has netted 10 hat-tricks for Portugal.
Messi has a total of 56 career hat tricks. At club level, he scored 48, with eight coming in the Champions League (tied with Ronaldo). He has also scored eight hat-tricks for Argentina. His last hat-trick came for La Albiceleste when they beat Estonia 5-0 in June 2022.