Cristiano Ronaldo had a penalty saved but scored twice in stoppage time to give Portugal a 2-1 win over the Republic of Ireland in a World Cup qualifier on Wednesday. The Manchester United forward's late headers made him the all-time leading scorer in men's international football with 111 goals, surpassing Ali Daei's record of 109.
Ireland took the lead through John Egan's header just before half-time, and goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu saved Ronaldo's first-half penalty. But Ronaldo equalised in the 89th minute with a header from Gonçalo Guedes' cross, then scored the winner in the sixth minute of added time from João Mário's delivery.
Ireland manager Stephen Kenny praised his team's performance but lamented the result. 'He's a phenomenon,' Kenny said of Ronaldo. 'But we're kicking ourselves. It would have been the greatest result in Irish qualification history.'
Ronaldo said: 'I'm very happy not only because I beat the record but for the special moments we had – getting two goals at the end of the game is so tough.'
