Cristiano Ronaldo Called The GOAT ๐ After Historic Goal in Portugal's World Cup Win
Mike Chiari@@mikechiari
Featured Columnist IVNovember 24, 2022
Cristiano Ronaldo made history Thursday at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, becoming the first male player to score at five different World Cups in a 3-2 opening win for Portugal over Ghana.
The 37-year-old was tripped in the box for a penalty in the 65th minute, and he put Portugal ahead 1-0 from the spot:
By virtue of his historic goal, many on social media referred to Ronaldo as the greatest soccer player of all time, including former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson:
Portugal @selecaoportugal<a href="https://twitter.com/Cristiano?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Cristiano</a> แดแดแด The GOAT ๐ แดแดแด ๐ of <a href="https://twitter.com/GWR?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GWR</a>.<br><br>๐ช๐ถ๐๐ป๐ฒ๐๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ป๐ฒ๐๐: 1ยบ Jogador a marcar em 5 Mundiais diferentes! ๐คฏโฝ <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VesteABandeira?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VesteABandeira</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WearTheFlag?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WearTheFlag</a> <a href="https://t.co/LsGtQPzn29">pic.twitter.com/LsGtQPzn29</a>
Shina Oludare ๐ณ๐ฌ @sportingshinaCristiano Ronaldo becomes the first player to score in five different <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FIFAWorldCup?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FIFAWorldCup</a>. The real GOAT.๐ <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PORGHA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PORGHA</a> <a href="https://t.co/6uLUyOe4yg">pic.twitter.com/6uLUyOe4yg</a>
As has been the case for Ronaldo throughout most of his career, his accomplishment was also compared to Argentinian star Lionel Messi.
By scoring Thursday, Ronaldo broke a tie with Messi and others for most World Cup tournaments scored in, and he recorded his eighth career World Cup goal overall, which also put him one ahead of Messi:
Ronaldo's record-breaking goal came during a tumultuous week that saw him mutually agree to have his contract with English Premier League club Manchester United terminated.
As a result, Ronaldo's second stint with United ended after less than two full seasons.
The club drama did not impact Ronaldo's play at the international level, though, as his PK was the catalyst for what was ultimately a 3-2 win.
Ghana scored a surprising equalizer in the 73rd minute when Andrรฉ Ayew found the back of the net, but Joรฃo Fรฉlix scored in the 78th minute and Rafael Leรฃo followed up with a goal in the 80th minute to put Portugal 3-1 ahead.
Osman Bukari shrunk the deficit back down to one with a goal in the 89th minute, but Portugal managed to hang on for the win.
Ronaldo and Portugal are now in great position to advance to the knockout stage for the fourth time at the past five World Cups.
On Monday, Ronaldo will look to add to his career haul of World Cup goals when Portugal faces Uruguay, while Ghana will meet South Korea.