Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo made World Cup history on Tuesday after becoming the first player to score in six different editions of the tournament during his side’s emphatic 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan.
According to ESPN, the 41-year-old ended a 10-match goal drought in major international tournaments with a sixth-minute strike in the Group K encounter.
Ronaldo, who had failed to score since November 2022 and came under criticism following Portugal’s 1-1 draw against Congo DR last week, opened the scoring with a near-post finish before adding a second goal later in the first half.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner also turned down the opportunity to take a free kick, allowing Nuno Mendes to score, as Portugal cruised to a dominant victory.
The result moved Portugal to four points in the group ahead of their final group-stage match against Colombia in Miami on Saturday.
Speaking after the game, Ronaldo admitted it had been a difficult period following criticism directed at him and head coach Roberto Martínez.
“God helps those who work hard. I knew my teammates would help out too,” Ronaldo said.
“It was a difficult week, a dark week. It felt like I’d retired from soccer. But I hung in there, as I always do, because I believe in hard work more than anything else.”
The goals saw Ronaldo become the first player to score in six World Cup tournaments — 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2026.
He also became the second-oldest goalscorer in World Cup history at 41 years and 138 days, behind Cameroon legend Roger Milla, who scored at the 1994 tournament aged 42 years and 39 days.
Portugal’s fourth goal came through an own goal involving Uzbekistan defenders Abdukodir Khusanov and Abduvohid Nematov, while Rafael Leão completed the scoring late in the match.
Ronaldo was named Man of the Match after another record-breaking performance and said he remains focused on helping the team succeed despite constant scrutiny.
“When things go well, Cristiano is doing great, but when they go badly, Cristiano is retired, he’s too old. It will always be like that,” he said.
“But we responded well today. That’s what we wanted.”
The Portuguese star now has 10 World Cup goals in his career and remains one of only two male players, alongside Argentina captain Lionel Messi, to have appeared in six World Cup tournaments.
Tuesday’s match also marked Ronaldo’s 230th appearance for Portugal, extending his record as the most-capped player in men’s international football. He has scored 145 goals for his country during his illustrious international career.
