Cristiano Ronaldo to break record Lionel Messi is unlikely to match

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Cristiano Ronaldo looks poised to write himself into the history books once again on Thursday when he could break yet another record like Lionel Messi potentially may never match. It’s been almost 20 years since CR7 made his first ever appearance for the Portuguese national side when he made his debut against Kazakhstan in 2003 and if he features in the Euro 2024 qualifier against Liechtenstein – he will become the most-capped men’s international player of all-time.

Ronaldo has collected 196 caps for Portugal during a remarkable international career but it appears the Al-Nassr talisman is far from finished yet as he targets his next standout achievement.

As it stands, the seasoned veteran is currently tied on 196 international appearances with Kuwait legend Bader Al-Mutawa, who coincidentally is the same age as the 38-year-old having also made his national team debut back in 2003.

Messi is not a million miles away having played 172 times for Argentina but it has been speculated that he will now reduce his involvement with the national team having won the World Cup to prolong his club career.

The Paris Saint-Germain could add more caps to his name this international break though after being named as part of Lionel Scaloni’s 35-man squad to face Panama and Curacao in friendlies.

The two matches have been pencilled in as part of a celebration for Argentina’s World Cup success in Qatar as it hands the players another chance to celebrate and enjoy the stunning triumph.

Scaloni has already confirmed that Messi will be automatically guaranteed a place in Argentina’s 2026 World Cup squad should he wish to be involved but with Ronaldo keen to continue playing for Portugal, it seems he will maintain his substantial lead over Messi as the international game’s most-capped player.

CR7 will already have it engraved into the back of his mind that he will want to retire from international football with a clear lead at the top of the appearance standings.

There are only a handful of active stars that are currently close to Ronaldo’s appearance record at international level and the majority of which have already retired.

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Mexico’s Andres Guardado has now featured at five World Cups having made 179 appearances for his national team.

Sergio Ramos picked up 180 caps for Spain before calling time on his international career in the past few months having been left out of Luis Enrique’s squad for Qatar 2022.

Ahmed Kano of Oman also won a whopping 180 caps for his country before retiring from international football in 2019.

Ronaldo had initially raised fears he was set to retire from international football after Portugal’s World Cup quarter-final elimination at the hands of Morocco.

He wrote in a reflective post on Instagram: “Winning a World Cup for Portugal was the biggest and most ambitious dream of my career. Fortunately I won many titles of international dimension, including Portugal, but putting our country’s name on the highest foot in the World was my biggest dream.

“I fought for it. I fought hard for this dream. In the 5 appearances I scored in World Cups over 16 years, always by the side of great players and supported by millions of Portuguese, I gave my all. Leave it all out on the field. I never turned my face to the fight and I never gave up on that dream.

“Sadly yesterday the dream ended It’s not worth reacting to heat. I just want you all to know that much has been said, much has been written, much has been speculated, but my dedication to Portugal hasn’t changed for a moment. I was always one fighting for the objective of all and I would never turn my back on my colleagues and my country.

“For now, there’s not much more to say. Thank you, Portugal. Thank you, Qatar. The dream was beautiful while it lasted… Now, it’s time to be a good advisor and allow each one to draw their own conclusions.”

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