Our no.7’s 76th-minute free-kick against Norwich City sealed three points at Old Trafford, and also completed a landmark personal achievement: a 60th career hat-trick.

Ronaldo had opened the scoring after only seven minutes, tapping home after Anthony Elanga won possession back high up the pitch. His second came 15 minutes later, a thumping header from Alex Telles’s right-sided corner. After two Norwich goals either side of half-time had pulled the Canaries back level, Ronaldo came up with the goods to earn an important victory.

A month ago, Cristiano scored his first treble since rejoining United in August, hitting all three goals in a victory by the same scoreline against Tottenham Hotspur.

Reflecting on the achievement of 60 career hat-tricks on Sunday, Ronaldo tweeted: “30 hat-tricks before 30 and 30 hat-tricks after 30. It’s time to unbalance the scale!”

30 hat-tricks before 30 and 30 hat-tricks after 30. It’s time to unbalance the scale! 💪🏽 pic.twitter.com/McgGZBmzyh

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) April 17, 2022

It’s a remarkable feat, that half of the Portugal captain’s hat-tricks have come since his 30th birthday, a time when many footballers’ careers are beginning to wind down. The opposite has been true for Ronaldo.

LANDMARK HAT-TRICKS FOR OUR NO.7

1: Newcastle - 12 January 2008
10: Real Zaragoza - 28 August 2011
20: Getafe - 27 January 2013
30: Celta Vigo: 6 December 2014
40: Celta Vigo - 5 March 2016
50: Girona - 18 March 2018
60: Norwich - 16 April 2022

Hat-tricks for United in bold. All others for Real Madrid.

The three goals also take Ronaldo above the 20 mark for this season. It’s the 16th season in a row he’s hit that milestone, a run dating back to 2006/07.

As for Premier League goals alone, Cristiano now has 15 to his name this season. He’s the first player aged 36 or older to score that many in a single campaign. With six games left to play, there’s enough time for him to extend all these records, and, as he says, “unbalance the scale!”