MANCHESTER: Cristiano Ronaldo produced a hat-trick to lift Manchester United into fourth place in the Premier League on Saturday as Tottenham Hotspur were beaten in a 3-2 thriller at Old Trafford.
With the treble against Spurs, Ronaldo has lifted himself on top of FIFA's all-time scorers' list.
Ronaldo arrowed in a superb goal from distance to give the hosts a 12th-minute lead. Harry Kane's penalty drew Spurs level on 35 minutes after Alex Telles had handled Dejan Kulusevski's cross.
Ronaldo restored Man Utd's lead three minutes later, slotting in Jadon Sancho's pass following a sweeping move. Spurs levelled for a second time on 72 minutes when Sergio Reguilon's cross was turned into his own net by Harry Maguire.
But with eight minutes remaining, Ronaldo headed in a Telles centre to surpass the all-time goals record with his 807th career strike for club and country.
A first win in three lifts Man Utd to fourth with 50 points. Spurs are five points back in seventh, having played two matches fewer.