Brazilian soccer icon Pelé congratulated Juventus captain Cristiano Ronaldo on social media Sunday (March 14) after the Portuguese superstar broke his record for goals scored in “official matches,” this according to ESPN.
“Life is a solo flight,” Pelé wrote on social media. “Each makes his own journey. And what a beautiful journey you are having! I admire you a lot, I love watching you play and this is no secret to anyone. Congratulations on breaking my record of goals in official matches.”
Ronaldo broke Pelé’s record when he scored three goals against Cagliari in a 3-1 win. Scoring three goals in 32 minutes, it was the second-fastest hat trick of his career. The goals gave Ronaldo a career total of 770 goals, three more than Pele’s 767.
It must be noted that the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) does not keep an official record for all-time scoring. Because of this, the record was reported as having already been broken by Ronaldo before when he surpassed the total goals of Austrian-Czech footballer Josef Bican, who played professionally from 1931 to 1955.
Another database for soccer statistics called Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF) lists Pelé’s total at 775. Nevertheless, both Pelé and Ronaldo now recognize the record as broken.
“There’s no player in the World who hasn’t been raised listening to stories about his games, his goals and his achievements, and I’m no exception,” Ronaldo wrote on social media. “And for that reason, I’m filled with joy and pride as I acknowledge the goal that puts me on top of the World’s goal scoring list, overcoming Pelé’s record, something that I could never have dreamed of while growing up as a child from Madeira.”