View
comments
Cristiano Ronaldo has been hailed as 'a great champion of football' after equalling the international goal record for Portugal - by the man who set the landmark.
Former Iran forward Ali Daei sung the Juventus star's praises after scoring twice in the 2-2 draw with France in their final Euro 2020 group stage game, which put him level with his tally of 109 strikes.
With Ronaldo now destined to score one more to become the new record holder, Daei took time to congratulate him on his Instagram account, admitting he was 'honoured' that a player of his calibre was set to beat his total.
Cristiano Ronaldo was congratulated by former Iran star Ali Daei (R) after he scored twice against France to equal his international goal record
Daei, who played for Iran between 1993 and 2006 and spent a season with Bayern Munich in 1998, was full of respect for the former Real Madrid and Manchester United star, calling him 'a champion' and 'a caring humanist'.
'Congratulations to Cristiano Ronaldo who is now one goal away from breaking the men's international goal scoring record,' he wrote on his official account.
'I am honoured that this remarkable achievement will belong to Ronaldo - great
