Ranking Cristiano Ronaldo's 5 best years with Portugal
Cristiano Ronaldo has written his name in football’s history books forever. The all-time top scorer in professional football has taken goalscoring to a whole new level. It will be an arduous task for any future footballer to break Ronaldo’s record of 803 goals.
Prior to CR7’s arrival, Eusebio and Luis Figo were the two most renowned Portuguese players. Ronaldo had claimed Eusebio’s title as the best Portuguese player by the mid-2010s. He is arguably the best European player ever.
Cristiano Ronaldo's individual record with Portugal is staggering
@Cristiano (115 goals)
Ali Daei (109)
Dahari (89)
Puskas (84)
@Cristiano's 10th hat-trick for @selecaoportugal powers him on to 54 goals in his last 49 caps and further clear as the highest-scoring male in international football history 🤯🇵🇹 @Cristiano (115 goals)
🇮🇷 Ali Daei (109)
🇲🇾 Dahari (89)
🇭🇺 Puskas (84)
🇦🇷 Messi (80)
🎩 @Cristiano's 10th hat-trick for @selecaoportugal powers him on to 54 goals in his last 49 caps and further clear as the highest-scoring male in international football history 🤯 https://t.co/16rPrCQQ6V
Cristiano Ronaldo hasn’t always had the best of teammates at international level. The winger-turned-striker was only 19 years old when “A Selecao” lost to Greece in Euro 2004. Until Euro 2016, Ronaldo’s Portugal never troubled the strongest national sides.
Having said that, Ronaldo has enjoyed a top-notch international career at an individual level. The Manchester United striker is the leading international scorer with 115 goals for Portugal. Here are Cristiano Ronaldo’s five best years with Portugal.
#5 2013
Cristiano Ronaldo enjoyed a highly prolific year with Portugal in 2013. The then-Real Madrid winger netted ten times in nine appearances. He scored two hat-tricks that year, one each against Sweden and Northern Ireland.
The Portuguese skipper was at his lethal best during the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Portugal remained unbeaten in all matches where Ronaldo played the entirety of 90 minutes. In fact, they lost just one game with Ronaldo in the squad.
Portugal is heading to the World Cup!
Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo nets a hat trick as Portugal beats Sweden, 3-2. http://t.co/XlfdmShTNQ
Although Real Madrid had not started their Champions League winning spree by 2013, Ronaldo was already one of the best players in the world. This was when the Portugal number 7 crossed 50 goal contributions for the senior national team.
#4 2017
Unlike in 2013, Cristiano Ronaldo transformed into a centre forward in 2017. This only proliferated his goal-scoring numbers. The former Real Madrid superstar scored 11 goals in as many outings for Portugal in what turned out to be a bittersweet year.
The low point of the year was Portugal’s semi-final exit in the 2017 Confederations Cup. They bowed out after losing to Chile on penalties. Claudio Bravo's masterclass ensured that Portugal’s primary spot-kick taker, Ronaldo, wouldn’t even get a chance to show his penalty prowess.
CR70 - Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored 70 international goals for Portugal goal.com/en/match/portu… #CR7 #CR70 https://t.co/uk3iaF2d4d
The reigning Euro 2016 champions had to settle for a third-place finish at the 2017 Confederations Cup. Overall, it was a solid year for Ronaldo. He ended up scoring 11 goals and racking up four assists in a year that culminated in his 5th Ballon d’Or award.