Watch Cristiano Ronaldo score stunning double vs Sweden to surpass 100 Portugal goals as he closes in on world record
CRISTIANO RONALDO has added another notch to his belt by netting his 100th international goal.
The Portuguese superstar struck a stunning double to down Sweden and move within eight strikes of a world record.
It looked like he would have to wait a few more weeks before reaching the landmark due to injury.
Ronaldo, 35, was ruled out of the Uefa Nations League match against Croatia on Saturday.
The Juventus hitman was absent from training on Thursday with a toe injury and was subsequently left out last weekend for the 4-1 win.
That left him in a race against time to make tonight’s away trip to Sweden.
But the ex-Manchester United forward was passed fit and he ensured he marked the occasion by becoming a centurion.
And he did it in his usual stunning fashion.
After Swede Gustav Svensson was dismissed for a second yellow card on the stroke of half-time, he strode up to slam a right-footed effort from the free-kick straight into the top corner.
And it got even better for the star on 72 minutes as he pulled the trigger again on 72 minutes from outside the box to double his team’s advantage and seal the 2-0 win.
The first of his century for his country came way back at Euro 2004 during a 2-1 group stage loss to eventual winners Greece.
And with his strike tonight being his first for Portugal in 2020, he has now scored in 17 successive calendar years for them.
Most read in Football
He is now only the second man ever to achieve the feat of 100 goals for his country.
But he is still nine short of becoming the all-time top scorer at international level.
Itan’s legendary Ali Daei holds that accolade with an incredible 109 goals in 149 caps.