Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, a small boy from Madeira, Portugal, started his senior professional career at 17 playing for Sporting CF. Now at 40, he is surely one of the greatest players ever to play football, and still is going strong. When we have to pick the top 5 impactful hat-tricks scored by Cristiano Ronaldo in his career, it gets a bit tougher as he has a total of 66 hat-tricks for both club and country.
He just scored a goal in the final of the UEFA Nations League and was the top scorer of his team as well in the competition, and helped Portugal win their third International trophy. Before Ronaldo, for 75 years, Portugal hadn’t managed to reach a final. The day Ronaldo started playing, they have reached four finals and won three of them.
As of today, Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 938 senior career goals and is aiming for 1000 goals. If he manages to reach this mark, Ronaldo will become the first ever player to score 1000 goals, all of which have video evidence. Cristiano has played for clubs like Real Madrid (the highest goal scorer of the club), Manchester United, Juventus, Sporting, and is currently playing for Al Nassr.
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Top 5 impactful hat-tricks scored by Cristiano Ronaldo in his career
In the 66 hat-tricks he has scored in his career so far, the top five to take out from that are always challenging. There have been times when he turned the impossible possible. These five hat-tricks are the most impactful ones he scored:
5. Real Madrid vs Wolfsburg (2016)
After suffering a 2-0 defeat at the home of Wolfsburg in the first leg, many would have thought the game was over. It was the 15th minute when Dani Carvajal delivered the ball, and it deflected from the defender. A perfect run from Ronaldo, and it was a goal.
Just two minutes later, a ball from the corner by Toni Kroos, Ronaldo headed it, and it was 2-2. The best part of the game came in the 77th minute, when Ronaldo scored a free kick and Real Madrid went 3-0 up and eventually won the game.
4. Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid (2017)
Cristiano Ronaldo, in his career, has always loved to score against Atletico Madrid. It was the first leg of the 2017 UEFA Champions League. He knew that he was coming against one of the best defences in the competition.
Ronaldo scored the first goal in the 10th minute as a powerful header found its way into the back of the net. Two late goals in the 73rd and 86th minutes seal the deal. That game produced one of the most celebratory poses in football.
3. Portugal vs Spain (2018)
It was the first game of Group B in the FIFA World Cup 2018, and it couldn’t be a better game than Portugal vs Spain. Portugal were awarded a penalty for the fourth time, and Ronaldo scored. The second goal was a left-footed shot just outside the box just before halftime. It could have been saved from De Gea, but he made a mess out of that.
Now comes the most iconic moment of the game, a foul was made outside the box. It was the 88th minute when Ronaldo stepped up to take the free kick, which surely has to be one of the greatest free kicks scored under pressure.
2. Juventus vs Atletico Madrid (2019)
It was the round of 16 game in the 2019 UEFA Champions League. After suffering a 2-0 loss in the first leg at the Metropolitano, the Atletico Madrid fans mocked Cristiano Ronaldo. They didn’t learned from the past times, what could the outcome be. The match started with a good approach from Juventus, and Ronaldo scored the goal in the 29th minute.
Just after the first half, in the 49th minute, Ronaldo equalized and made it level 2-2 on aggregate. Juventus were awarded a penalty in the last moments of the game. Ronaldo was calm and composed, and with a deep breath, he scored the goal. He later gave it back to the fans who mocked him.
1. Sweden vs Portugal (2013)
Every football player who starts playing football always wants to help their nation. After Ronaldo’s arrival, Portugal has qualified for every World Cup and European Championship. This game against Sweden was a must-win game for both teams, as the one that won had the ticket to the World Cup. The first leg ended 1-0 to Portugal. In the second leg, Ronaldo scored first in the second half, whereas Zlatan Ibrahimovic replied with two goals.
It was just a moment of magic needed from Ronaldo to bring the game back and help his country. In the span of two minutes (77 and 79), scored two goals that came from counterattacks and helped Portugal get a spot in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
