Cristiano Ronaldo has cemented his legacy in football history becoming the first player to score in six different FIFA World Cup tournaments. The 41-year-old achieved this milestone by netting a brace in Portugal’s Group K emphatic 5-0 Group K win over Uzbekistan in Houston on Tuesday.
Silencing critics following a goalless 1-1 draw against Congo in their opener Ronaldo struck early in the sixth minute. He comfortably converted a cross from João Cancelo to give Portugal a 1-0 lead. Later in the 39th minute he found the net again after receiving a sharp pass from Bruno Fernandes extending the scoreline to 3-0.
These goals marked Ronaldo’s 144th and 145th international strikes in a record-extending 230th appearance for his country. His performance also pushed his total World Cup goal tally to 10 and officially surpassing the legendary Eusébio’s Portuguese record of nine tournament goals.
At 41 years old Ronaldo is now the second-oldest goalscorer in World Cup history trailing only Cameroon’s Roger Milla who scored at age 42 during the 1994 tournament.
While Ronaldo shares the record of playing in six World Cups with his long-time rival Lionel Messi he stands entirely alone in scoring in every single edition since his 2006 debut. Messi who currently holds the all-time tournament scoring record with 18 goals did not score during the 2010 edition in South Africa.
As Portugal advances, this tournament will likely serve as the final global stage for Ronaldo capping off an unprecedented international career.
Nuno Mendes scored a superb free kick in between those two strikes while the unfortunate Uzbekistan goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov fumbled the ball into his own net and Rafael Leao added a late fifth in front of a full house fans.
