Cristiano Ronaldo scored another hat-trick last night in Portugal's 5-0 thumping of Luxembourg in a World Cup qualifier to take his record tally of international goals up to 115 - six more than Ali Daei's total of 109.
But the Manchester United megastar could have made it 116 with an outrageous bicycle kick that was tipped over the bar by Luxembourg keeper Anthony Moris.
It was almost a vintage Ronaldo goal, as João Cancelo picked him out with a superb cross from the right-hand side that he superbly brought down while already going backwards, only to be denied a fairy-tale conclusion by Moris.
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The clip of the chance posted on Twitter also includes a similar effort in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Azerbaijan back in October 2006, which was deemed not to have crossed the line. This was long before the days of VAR which would have surely awarded the goal to a 21-year-old Ronaldo.
Portugal ultimately won the game comfortably with a 3-0 victory, but no doubt Ronaldo would have still been irritated by the decision.
At least nobody could say this present-day effort crossed the line, but the now seasoned veteran of the game still expressed his frustration in what was otherwise a fine night's work for A Seleção.
The 36-year-old scored two penalties and a header on the night, while his Manchester United teammate Bruno Fernandes and Alves Palhinha Gonçalves also scored in the rout.
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Portugal sit second in Group A, only a point behind Serbia with a game in hand. They face Dragan Stojković's side in their final qualifier after a trip to the Republic of Ireland next month.
Ronaldo will turn his attention back to Manchester United first, and faces a tricky trip to Leicester City on Saturday. He will be aiming to continue his bright start to life back at the Red Devils, after scoring 5 goals in his 6 appearances across all competitions to date since completing his return to the club in August.
Topics: Bruno Fernandes, Manchester United, Portugal, Joao Cancelo, Cristiano Ronaldo
