🔝 All-time top international goalscorers:⚽️1⃣0⃣9⃣ Ali Daei 🇮🇷⚽️1⃣0⃣9⃣ Cristiano Ronaldo 🇵🇹 #EURO2020 https://t.co/NRx7rCLqMC
— UEFA EURO 2020 (@EURO2020) 1624480382000
Ronaldo netted his first international goal in a 2-1 loss to Greece in the opening game of Euro 2004 in Portugal, where the hosts later lost to Greece 1-0 in the final.
Daei, nicknamed the ‘Shariar’ (King in Persian), scored a remarkable 109 goals in 149 appearances for Iran between 1993 and 2006, an achievement many thought would never be matched.
Daei has said on several occasions that he would be “delighted” if Ronaldo broke his record, as he believes the Juventus striker ranks among the best three players in history, alongside Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona.
“Records are made to be broken,” Daei told Khabar Online news agency in 2018.
“Ronaldo really has the qualities to do it. I have a lot of respect for him. He is such a great player that it isn’t even necessary to sing his praises.”