(Football news) Cristiano Ronaldo continued his scoring form as he tucked away a penalty and then went onto slam home a free kick as he also set a new record for the most international caps in Portugal’s emphatic 4-0 win over Liechtenstein in their opening Euro 2024 qualifying match. Ronaldo won his 197th cap which surpassed Kuwait’s Bader Al-Mutawa as he returned to the starting lineup after being left out from the starting XI in the World Cup.
He started off the scoring when he converted a 51st-minute penalty for his first goal against the tiny principality country as Portugal went 3-0 in front. Ronaldo then went on to add the fourth goal with a trademark free kick that visiting goalkeeper Benjamin Buchel couldn’t keep out because of the power in the shot. The scoring was started off by Joao Cancelo who had put Portugal into an eighth-minute lead with a long-range shot that took a deflection through a crowd of players as Portugal were frustrated in the first half by solid defending from the visitors.
In the second half, Bernardo Silva picked up a loose ball after Cancelo’s cross was blocked as the Man City player got the loose ball and rifled home for a 2-0 lead. Ronaldo tucked in a penalty in trademark fashion after Cancelo was brought down in the penalty box before his bullet free kick in the 63rd minute extended his record for the most goals in international football to 120 goals. The Portugal captain was taken off in the 78th minute before he could bag a hat trick.
Ronaldo was benched by former coach Fernando Santos for Portugal’s final two games at the World Cup in Qatar. Former Belgium manager Roberto Martinez who replaced Santos as he was subsequently managing his first game as coach of Portugal, gave the 5 time ballon d’or winner his first start for his national team in three matches. Ronaldo is currently playing with Al Nassr after a disastrous time with Manchester United, but Martinez has publicly said the door is still open for the country’s biggest star to carry on with the national team and will support him in every step of the way.
After the match, Ronaldo wrote on Instagram: “Such good feelings for playing again and scoring for our national team and in a special stadium for me. Proud to be the most capped player ever.”
“It was very, very positive,” Martinez told Portuguese television. “It was an obvious next step from the attitude and the work we did in training. It is always very difficult to play this type of game, they are ‘trap games’, but the way we played with the ball and how we smothered the danger of Liechtenstein was very important.”
“It’s a new cycle. It’s important for a player to show commitment and that we can use his experience, and Cristiano shows that,” Martinez added
Also read: Sime Vrsaljko retires from football after a string of serious injuries
