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Ahead of Portugal's UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier at home to Slovakia on Friday (October 13), Cristiano Ronaldo received an award for his recent achievement of 200 international appearances.
The 38-year-old reached the landmark in the 1-0 win at Iceland on Matchday 4 on June 19, becoming the first male player to do so. Ronaldo marked the occasion with a late winner as Portugal made it four wins out of four in their qualifying campaign.
Since that game, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner is appearing for the first time at home. Ronaldo had missed the Selecao's 9-0 home win over Luxembourg last month due to suspension (accumulation of yellow cards).
Ahead of the qualifying game against Slovakia at the Estadio do Dragao in Porto, Ronaldo received a special trophy from the Portugal Football Association to mark 200 games with the country.
Fans at the Dragao also paid a special tribute to their captain by unfurling a banner with the words "CR 200" with Ronaldo's picture.
The 38-year-old starts for the Selecao with fellow attackers Goncalo Ramos, Rafael Leao and Bernardo Silva in a strong lineup named by manager Roberto Martinez.
The Euro 2016 winners will book their place in the 2024 Championships in Germany with a win over Slovakia. They lead their qualifying group with a perfect 18 points from six games, scoring 24 goals and conceding nine. Martinez's side lead second-placed Slovakia by five points with four games to go.
How Cristiano Ronaldo has fared for Portugal in the European Championship
Cristiano Ronaldo is the all-time top scorer in the history of the European Championship with 14 goals in 25 games. The Portugal star is the only one to appear as well as score in five different editions of the continental competition.
His brace in the 3-0 group-stage win over Hungary at Euro 2020 took him past erstwhile top scorer Michel Platini (9). In the process, Ronaldo also became the first player to score in five different editions of the Euros.
Ronaldo would score thrice more in his next three games but was powerless to prevent a 1-0 loss to Belgium in the Round of 16 as defending champions Portugal bowed out with a whimper.
