This archive report was first published on 15 November 2019.
On Thursday night, Cristiano Ronaldo inspired Portugal to a 6-0 thrashing of Lithuania in Euro 2020 qualifying, scoring a hat-trick in the Group B win.
Published on November 15, 2019, this achievement marked a significant milestone in Ronaldo's illustrious career.
With his three goals against Lithuania, Ronaldo broke the record for the top scorer in European Championship qualifiers, with 30 goals in 34 appearances.
He has now scored 98 goals for Portugal and is two goals shy of reaching a century in 163 caps for the national team.
Moreover, Ronaldo has netted a hat-trick in 12 different countries, including Lithuania, Portugal, Italy, Russia, Spain, Japan, Armenia, Sweden, Turkey, Northern Ireland, Netherlands, and England.
His impressive record also includes scoring 55 hat-tricks for club and country throughout his glittering career.
Now on 98 goals, the 34-year-old is still hungry to surpass Ali Daei's record of 109 international goals in 149 caps for Iran.
As the defending champions of the 2016 edition, Portugal are well-positioned to qualify for the Euro 2020 tournament, which is scheduled to take place from June 12 to July 12 in 12 cities across 12 European countries.
