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Playing for the country is considered a top achievement in the life of every footballer and to score goals in a major international tournament is like a cherry on the cake. That being said, every striker dreams of breaking all records and becoming the top goal-scorer just like the way Miroslav Klose broke all records by scoring his 16th goal in the FIFA World Cup 2014 to become the all-time leading goal scorer at the FIFA World Cup.
The top international goal-scorer of all time is Ali Daei with 109 goals, however, he hung his boots long back. Nonetheless, there are some other active international players who are getting the best of the opportunities and are scoring a lot of goals.
Right on this note, let us take a look at the top three active international goal scorers.
#3 Lionel Messi (65 goals)
Lionel Messi has scored 65 goals in 128 games for his country thus far and is currently the third most active goalscorer in international football.
After making his international debut in 2005, Messi led his country to the finals of the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and was also a part of the FIFA World Cup Dream Team in the same year. He led Argentina to the finals of the Copa America on three different occasions but failed to convert any of them into a silverware.
The 30-year-old enjoyed an exceptional career at the club level as well and is regarded as one of the best players to have ever played for Barcelona. He won 30 trophies with the Spanish Giants, including eight La Liga titles, four UEFA Champions League titles, and five Copa del Rey.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner is the highest scoring player in Barcelona's history and he also scored the highest number of hat-tricks in all competitions for the club.
#2 Sunil Chhetri (67 goals)
The Indian Skipper, Sunil Chhetri, scored a brace against Thailand at the Asian Cup 2019 to reach 67 goals and overtook Lionel Messi's 65 goals to move second on the list of the top active international goalscorers.
The 34-year-old is regarded as one of the best Indian footballers of all time and is both the most-capped player as well as the all-time top goalscorer for the Indian national team. He helped his nation win the Nehru Cup three times along with two SAFF Championship and one AFC Challenge Cup.
His performances at the club level were decent as well and he was awarded the Hero of I-League accolade during the 2016-17 season. Chettri is also a recipient of five AIFF Player of the Year awards and he was also honored by the Indian Government with the prestigious Arjuna Award.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo (85 goals)
Undoubtedly one of the best players of all times, Cristiano Ronaldo holds the number one position on this list with an astonishing 85 goals in 154 appearances.
Ronaldo made his international debut in 2002 and is a regular starter for the Portuguese national football team since then. He helped his country win the UEFA Euro Championship 2016 and was a part of the UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament on three different occasions.
The Portuguese international also enjoyed great success at the club level and is Real Madrid's all-time top goalscorer with 451 goals. Ronaldo is currently the leading goalscorer in the history of the Champions League and is the only player so far to score 60 or more goals in a calendar year four times.
The 33-year-old joined Juventus from Real Madrid at the start of the current season but that didn't affect his goalscoring form and he is currently the leading goalscorer in the Serie A this season with 14 goals.
