This archive report was first published on 15 November 2019.
Published on November 15, 2019, Cristiano Ronaldo's impressive form continued as he scored his ninth international hat-trick, leading Portugal to a 6-0 thrashing of Lithuania in Faro on Thursday.
Portugal's victory moved them to the brink of qualifying for Euro 2020, with the reigning European champions sitting second in the standings behind Ukraine, who have already qualified.
"I knew he (Ronaldo) was able to play," Portugal coach Fernando Santos told Portuguese TV channel RTP. "His match put an end to the doubts about his physical condition, for those who had doubts. I personally had none, and I said that."
With this win, Ronaldo has now scored 98 international goals and will be hoping to become the second-ever player to reach 100 this weekend, a feat achieved by Iranian great Ali Daei with 109 international strikes.
The 34-year-old Juventus forward has scored 13 goals in his last seven Portugal appearances, including his other hat-tricks for Real Madrid, Juventus, and Manchester United.
