Cristiano Ronaldo set another goalscoring record in a return to form with a hat-trick to live up to Manchester United’s chances of playing in the Champions League next season with a 3-2 win over Tottenham on Saturday. Ronaldo had only scored once in his previous 10 games, but three fantastic finishes saw him clearly become the highest scorer in the history of professional men’s football, according to the FIFA records with 807 goals for club and country.
The win brings United back to fourth place, although they are just two points clear of Arsenal, who have four games on their hands.
A fifth defeat in eight league games is another blow to Tottenham’s hopes of a top four finish as they remain seventh, now five points behind United.
Ronaldo’s second stint at Old Trafford so far has proved to be an anti-climax, with his poor form sparking discussions as to whether the 37-year-old’s strengths are on the wane.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner missed United’s thrashing in the Manchester derby last weekend and was criticized for an alleged lack of dedication when he flew to Portugal to rehabilitate a hip injury rather than watch his team-mates lost 4-1 in the Etihad.
He was reinstated to Ralf Rangnick’s starting line-up as one of five substitutions from that damaging defeat to Bruno Fernandes, the notable absentee due to illness.
It took just 12 minutes for Ronaldo to make his mark with a stunning top corner attack from outside the box.
However, United failed to build on the early goal and were instead forced to return in a familiar pattern to earlier home games this season against stronger opponents.
The Spurs had the ball quickly in the net in response, but Ben Davies was flagged for offside before a corner from Eric Dier was swept off the line.
An equalizer for Tottenham seemed only a matter of time and they were gifted when Alex Telles cleared a cross from Dejan Kulusevski for a clear penalty.
Harry Kane crushed the resulting spot kick to continue his fine form for his sixth goal in as many games.
Within three minutes, however, United were back up front thanks to a landmark goal for Ronaldo.
He returned home Jadon Sancho’s inviting cross to surpass Austria-Czech striker Josef Bican as football’s all-time record scorer according to FIFA records.
United’s defensive shortcomings meant that Ronaldo’s job was not done to win the game as the Spurs enjoyed the better of the second half.
Son Heung-min missed a glorious opportunity from Kulusevski’s cut-back.
When Antonio Conte’s men scored a second equalizer, it was thanks to more misery for United captain Harry Maguire.
Continued mistakes by the England international have played a big part in his side’s struggles this season, as he turned his own net from a Sergio Reguilon cross.
Conte screamed for focus from his side on the sidelines, but they once again succumbed to Ronaldo’s predatory instincts.
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United’s number seven rose highest, reaching Telles’ corner nine minutes from time to drive a header into the top corner for just his second United hat-trick and the first since his return to Old Trafford in August.
(This story was not edited by DailyExpertNews staff and was generated automatically from a syndicated feed.)
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