Hat Tricks of Veterans!
*Lewandowski, Benzema, Ronaldo proving age just a number
Duro Ikhazuagbe
On Tuesday last week, 33-year-old Robert Lewandowski scored a Champions League hat-trick against FC Salzburg. The three goals were scored in just 11 minutes. The Polish international has 12 goals in the Champions League this term with 29 in the German Bundesliga. In all, Lewandowski has over 600 goals in his career for both club and country. And his is 33 years old.
Twenty four hours later, 34-year-old Frenchman, Karim Benzema, fired a hat trick of goals to help leapfrog Real Madrid above visiting PSG into the quarter finals of this year’s Champions League. That hat trick moved Benzema’s tally in the Champions League to eight goals. He also has 20 goals to his credit in the Spanish La Liga this term. With his 290 goals at Santiago Bernabau, Benzema ranks fourth amongst Madrid’s all-time scorers that include Alfredo di Stefano (308), Raul Gonzalez Blanco (323) and Cristiano Ronaldo (451) goals.
Interestingly, the 37-year-old Portuguese last Saturday also chalked up his second Premier League hat-trick as floundering Manchester United defeated Tottenham Hotspur 3-2. Ronaldo etched his name in the record books as professional football’s all-time leading scorer with 807 goals!
The all-time goal-scorer title in men’s football is much contested and as FIFA does not keep an official record, but the world governing body estimates that Austro-Czech Josef Bican netted 805 goals during a career that lasted from 1931 to 1955.
Ronaldo’s 12th-minute opener at Old Trafford was a superb strike from distance that helped him equal the record.
The Portugal international then went past Bican with a tap-in from Jadon Sancho’s neat pass to put United 2-1 in front before powerfully heading home his third and the winner to spark wild celebrations in the stands.
It was the 59th hat trick of Ronaldo’s career and his first for United since 2008 following his return.
“It was a beautiful game and a beautiful reaction from us,” United midfielder Paul Pogba told BBC Sport. “We hurt them at the right times and Ronaldo did what he does best.
“He has never been a problem. When you have the best striker in history in our team, it cannot be a problem. Today he showed why he is Cristiano Ronaldo. The performance from him and all the team was very brilliant,” stressed the French star.
Ronaldo’s goals have been scored for Sporting CP (the Portuguese side from where he switched to Old Trafford in 2003), United, Real Madrid, Juventus and the Portugal national team.
Ronaldo holds the all-time records for most Champions League goals (140) and most international goals in men’s world football (115). He’s a five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Although Czech FA has insisted that Bican’s total was actually 821 goals following a review of his statistics, there’s no stopping Ronaldo now as he appears still in tip-top shape to continue his club career for several more seasons.
Brazilian strikers Pele and Romario each scored more than 1,000 goals during their careers, but those statistics include strikes in amateur, unofficial and friendly matches.
Speaking after Saturday’s hat trick, Ronaldo said on social media: “Nothing beats the feeling of being back on the pitch and help the team with goals and effort,” he wrote on Instagram after the game. “We’ve proven once again that we can beat any team in any given day, as long as we work hard and stand together as one.”
To have been able to move over 70,000 fans to their feet, there is no stopping Ronaldo now even as there are speculations he’s likely to move in summer despite still having one year left on his contract at Old Trafford.
