Cristiano Ronaldo writes history once again after latest Juventus exploits
- Cristiano Ronaldo made history on Monday night as he scored his first ever Serie A hat-trick for Juventus.
- His three goals against Cagliari saw him became the only player in history to have hit hat-tricks in Italy, England, and Spain's top divisions, as well as the World Cup.
- The 34-year-old managed one in the Premier League for Manchester United, one at the World Cup for Portugal, but an astonishing 34 in La Liga for Real Madrid.
- Juve won 4-0 on the night to maintain pace at the top of the Serie A table with leaders Inter Milan, whom beat Napoli 3-1 on the same night.
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Cristiano Ronaldo made history on Monday night as he scored his first ever Serie A hat-trick for Juventus.
The Portuguese star scored three as Maurizio Sarri's side swept aside Cagliari 4-0 at the Allianz Stadium, and in doing so, the 34-year-old became the only player in history to have hit hat-tricks in Italy, England, and Spain's top divisions, and at the World Cup.
Ronaldo scored just one hat-trick in the Premier League with Manchester United, which came in a 6-0 thumping of Newcastle United back in January, 2008. He also managed just one for Portugal at the World Cup in a 3-3 draw with Spain in 2018.
During his nine season spell with Real Madrid he hit an amazing 34 La Liga hat-tricks - the second most in history behind only Lionel Messi, who has scored 35.
In all competitions, Ronaldo has managed 56 career hat-tricks, which equates to just over 23% of his 715 career goals.
Ronaldo opened the scoring for Juve on Monday shortly after the start of the second half, when he pounced on an under-hit pass across the Cagliari box from defender Ragnar Klavan, before rounding keeper Robin Olsen and slotting home.
His second came from the penalty spot in the 67th minute, and the hat-trick was complete in the 82nd, just over a minute after Gonzalo Higuain had scored Juventus' third.
"It was a good start to the year, but the important thing is the team," Ronaldo said after making history with his hat-trick, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. "We created chances, and scoring is always important.
"Our game is getting better game by game but we have to work and keep improving."
The win ensured Juve maintained pace with Inter Milan, whom beat Napoli 3-1 on the same night, at the top of the Serie A table.
Both teams are level on 45 points with 18 games played.
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