Serbia forward Aleksandar Mitrović and Slovenia striker Benjamin Šeško are the only players to have scored in five consecutive UEFA Nations League matches, according to UEFA.

The pair share the competition’s longest scoring streak, with Mitrović finding the net in five successive matches between June 5, 2022 and October 12, 2024, while Šeško achieved the feat between June 12, 2022 and September 9, 2024.

Both players also scored hat-tricks during their respective scoring runs.

Mitrović scored three times against Sweden on September 24, 2022, while Šeško netted a treble against Kazakhstan on September 9, 2024.

Meanwhile, UEFA, in a Saturday release, said 18 different players have scored Nations League hat-tricks, with Finland forward Joel Pohjanpalo the latest to join the list after scoring three times in Finland’s 7-0 victory over San Marino in September 2026.

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo remains the only player to score a hat-trick in the Nations League Finals.

His treble came against Switzerland in the 2019 semi-final.

Norway forward Erling Haaland and Spain’s Ferran Torres are the youngest players to score Nations League hat-tricks, doing so at 20 years and 82 days and 20 years and 262 days respectively.

Nations League players with hat-tricks

– Yura Movsisyan (Armenia) — vs Gibraltar, November 16, 2018*

– Haris Seferović (Switzerland) — vs Belgium, November 18, 2018

– James Forrest (Scotland) — vs Israel, November 20, 2018

– Arber Zeneli (Kosovo) — vs Azerbaijan, November 20, 2018

– Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) — vs Switzerland, June 5, 2019

– Erling Haaland (Norway) — vs Romania, October 11, 2020

– Eran Zahavi (Israel) — vs Slovakia, October 14, 2020

– Haris Vučkić (Slovenia) — vs Moldova, October 14, 2020

– Ferran Torres (Spain) — vs Germany, November 17, 2020

– Stefan Mugoša (Montenegro) — vs Romania, June 14, 2022

– Aleksandar Mitrović (Serbia) — vs Sweden, September 24, 2022

– Benjamin Šeško (Slovenia) — vs Kazakhstan, September 9, 2024

– Kerem Aktürkoğlu (Türkiye) — vs Iceland, September 9, 2024

– Isaac Price (Northern Ireland) — vs Bulgaria, October 15, 2024

– Erling Haaland (Norway) — vs Kazakhstan, November 17, 2024

– Viktor Gyökeres (Sweden) — vs Azerbaijan, November 19, 2024*

– Nikola Krstović (Montenegro) — vs Türkiye, November 19, 202

– Vedat Muriqi (Kosovo) — vs Iceland, March 23, 2025

– Joel Pohjanpalo (Finland) — vs San Marino, September 26, 2026

*UEFA denotes Movsisyan and Gyökeres as players who scored four goals in those matches.

Longest successive scoring runs

5 matches

– Aleksandar Mitrović (Serbia) — June 5, 2022 to October 12, 2024
– Benjamin Šeško (Slovenia) — June 12, 2022 to September 9, 2024

4 matches

– Răzvan Marin (Romania) — September 6, 2024 to October 15, 2024
– Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Georgia) — October 14, 2020 to June 9, 2022
– Georges Mikautadze (Georgia) — November 16, 2024 to September 25, 2026
– Viktor Gyökeres (Sweden) — October 14, 2024 to present

Source: punchng.com

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Lionel Messi curled home a spectacular free-kick from a near-impossible angle to equalise for Inter Miami against Columbus Crew on Sunday, taking his career total of free-kick goals to 76 and moving within two of the all-time record, according to football transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.

The Argentine, 39, stood over a set-piece awarded near the right touchline in the 33rd minute after Columbus had taken an early lead through Josef Martínez. Rather than deliver a cross into the box, Messi struck the ball with his left foot, sending it over the wall and into the far top corner beyond the reach of goalkeeper Patrick Schulte.

The goal made the score 1-1, though Columbus went on to win 2-1 with a late stoppage-time strike.

The free-kick was Messi’s 76th in official matches across his career with Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Miami and Argentina.

It leaves him two short of the mark most widely attributed to Brazilian Marcelinho Carioca, who is credited with 78 direct free-kick goals.

Messi has enjoyed a prolific run from set pieces in 2026. He scored against San Diego FC to reach 75, netted twice in Inter Miami’s 7-1 win over CF Montréal, and also found the net from free-kicks against Orlando City, New York City FC, and Jordan with Argentina at the World Cup.

The latest strike continues Messi’s late-career mastery of free-kicks. He scored 50 for Barcelona, more than a dozen for Argentina, and has added further goals for Inter Miami since joining the MLS side in 2023.

His overall career goal tally now stands above 931.

Historical free-kick records can vary depending on the criteria used by different compilers, with some lists still placing Juninho Pernambucano near the top with 77.

However, recent tallies consistently rank Marcelinho Carioca first and Messi second after the Columbus goal.

Source: punchng.com

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Portugal manager Jorge Jesus has clarified why Cristiano Ronaldo remained an unused substitute throughout the 2-1 UEFA Nations League victory over Norway in Oslo on Sunday.

Ronaldo, 41, was named among the substitutes and was fit to play, but stayed on the bench for the full 90 minutes as Gonçalo Ramos started up front and scored the winning goal.

Jesus said he had initially planned to introduce the captain.

As reported by Fabrizio Romano on X on Monday, the coach was quoted as saying,  “I was thinking of Cristiano to come in… but then the game dictates other things,” he explained.

The coach emphasised that the decision was purely tactical and not related to fitness concerns. “I felt it wasn’t the right time to put him in the game. There are still two more games, but it wasn’t to protect him physically. He was ready,” Jesus added.

He further revealed that he had even agreed with Ronaldo beforehand to bring him on for the final half-hour. However, Ramos was performing well — scoring one goal and having another disallowed — and the match situation required different changes to maintain balance and protect the result.

Portugal used all five permitted substitutions, introducing players such as Vitinha, Rafael Leão, Rúben Neves, Francisco Trincão and Bernardo Silva, but Ronaldo was not among them.

Jesus left the door open for Ronaldo’s return in the upcoming fixtures, suggesting he could start against Denmark.

The result leaves Portugal top of their Nations League group after back-to-back wins.

Source: punchng.com

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