"The story isnβt over yet" - Portugal's X account send message to Cristiano Ronaldo as he nets 900th career goal
Portugal Football's X account commended their captain Cristiano Ronaldo for reaching the incredible landmark of 900 career goals for club and country. The 39-year-old achieved the milestone by netting his team's second goal in their UEfA Nations League opener against Croatia in Lisbon on Thursday.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner had arrived for the fixture in sublime goalscoring form, scoring in his club Al-Nass'r opening four games across competitions to start the season.
Having squandered a few chances to reach the landmark number in Al-Nassr's 4-1 Saudi Pro League win at Al-Feiha, Ronaldo finally entered the exclusive club with his national team.
The 2016 European Championship winners posted on X that their captain is far from done despite entering unchartered territory, tweeting (as translated from Portuguese):
"π΅π¬π¬π ππ₯ππ¦π§πππ‘π’ π₯π’π‘ππππ’ And the best part? The story isnβt over yetβ¦"
Following a barren Euro 2024 campaign - where he failed to score in five games as A Selecao bowed out to France on penalties in the quarter-final - Ronaldo is back among the goals for Portugal.
It was a record-extending 131st strike from the Al-Nassr striker, with only two other male players - Ali Daie and Lionel Messi - scoring 100 goals in international football.
A look at Cristiano Ronaldo's career with Portugal by the numbers
Cristiano Ronaldo has been a performer-par-excellence for Portugal since his senior debut in a 1-0 friendly home win over Kazakhstan in August 2003. After six scoreless outings, he scored his first goal for them and hasn't looked back.
In 213 games across competitions, he has struck 131 times - both record tallies in men's international football - and has also provided 45 assists. Except for 22 strikes and 12 assists in 54 games, all his goal contributions have come in competitive outings.
Ronaldo has scored 14 goals in 30 games across six different appearances at the Euros, all three being record tallies. However, he failed to create more history by becoming the first player to score in six Euros, as he returned goalless from Euro 2024.
However, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner is also the most prolific scorer in European Championship qualifying: 41 goals in 44 outings.
Ronaldo has also scored eight times in 22 games at the FIFA World Cup and 36 strikes in 47 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Moreover, he has scored eight times in 12 UEFA Nations League games and twice in four Confederations Cup outings.