Cristiano Ronaldo has scored the 900th goal of his illustrious career after netting Portugal’s second during their Nations League clash with Croatia on Thursday night.
Here, the PA news agency looks at the 39-year-old’s scoring record for club and country.
Sporting Lisbon
On the 7th of October 2002, @Cristiano Ronaldo scored his first official goal 👑⚽#OnThisDay #MadeInSporting https://t.co/btlQRfcOMk
— Sporting CP English (@SportingCP_en) October 7, 2021
Appearances: 31
Goals: 5
The future Portugal star played just one senior season in his homeland, demonstrating his potential with a handful of goals while only turning 18 late in the campaign.
Manchester United
Appearances: 346
Goals: 145
That early promise earned him a move to Old Trafford, where he flourished first as a flying winger before adding regular goals to his game.
He hit double figures for the first time in 2005-06 before three successive seasons of 20-plus goals, peaking with 31 in the Premier League and 42 in all competitions in 2007-08.
His first spell brought a total of 118 goals in 293 games to persuade Real Madrid to part with a then-world record 94 million euros (£80million).
A markedly less successful second spell in Manchester from 2021 to 2023 produced 27 goals in 54 games before an acrimonious end.
Real Madrid
Appearances: 438
Goals: 450
It was at Real from 2009 to 2018 that Ronaldo grew into the feared central striker he has become, as his rivalry with then-Barcelona star Lionel Messi saw both achieve scarcely believable scoring rates.
Ronaldo had six straight seasons with over 50 goals in all competitions from 2010-11, scoring a goal a game or better in all but the first of those and astonishingly maintaining such a record over his nine-year spell as a whole.
His best season brought him 61 goals in 54 games in 2014-15, surpassing his 60 in 55 in 2011-12. He beat Raul’s club records of 228 league goals and 323 in all competitions, became the Champions League’s record scorer – setting the single season record with 17 in 2013-14 – and reached 500 career goals for club and country.
By the time he left Spain, his 311 LaLiga goals ranked second only to Messi. Ronaldo won two league titles and three Pichichi trophies as LaLiga’s top scorer, with four Champions Leagues and four Ballons d’Or to take his personal total to five of each.
Juventus
Appearances: 134
Goals: 101
While not matching the extraordinary heights of his time in Spain, Ronaldo remained prolific in his three years with Juve and helped them to two league titles and a Coppa Italia.
He scored 28 goals in his debut season then 37 and 36, bringing up his century in his penultimate Serie A appearance. He was named Serie A footballer of the year for 2019 and 2020 and won an Outstanding Career Achievement honour at FIFA’s 2021 The Best awards.
Al-Nassr
50 SPL Goals and counting! 🐐 pic.twitter.com/2O0tvc6PkH
— AlNassr FC (@AlNassrFC_EN) August 22, 2024
Appearances: 74
Goals: 68
A move to Saudi Arabia after his falling-out with United was viewed as a kind of footballing semi-retirement – and was followed by Messi decamping to Major League Soccer in the United States – but the goals have continued to flow.
Ronaldo scored 14 in 16 Saudi Pro League games in his debut season then 35 in 31, and is quickly back up and running this term.
Portugal
Cristiano Ronaldo.
900 career goals 🤯#NationsLeague pic.twitter.com/5WFKOfvXkC
— UEFA Euro 2024 (@EURO2024) September 5, 2024
Appearances: 213
Goals: 131
His country’s talisman since Luis Figo’s retirement following the 2006 World Cup, Ronaldo has rewritten the record books.
Soaring past Ali Daei’s record of 108 goals in men’s internationals, Ronaldo took 114 caps to reach 50 goals but has 81 in 89 games since.
He helped his side win the European Championship in 2016 and is the competition’s record scorer, both with 14 goals at the finals and 55 including qualifiers. His appearance total and his feats of scoring at five different World Cups and 10 consecutive World Cups and Euros combined are also records.
