Ronaldo scores 3 in Portugal win, passes Pele in goals table
PORTO, Portugal (AP) Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat trick to move past Pele on the list of all-time international goalscorers as Portugal beat Faeroe Islands 5-1 Thursday to stay close to Switzerland at the top of Group B in World Cup European qualifying.
Ronaldo netted with a neat volley from inside the area then added two other goals to surpass the Brazil great and move into second place on the list of Europe's all-time scorers with 78 goals. He's six behind Hungary great Ferenc Puskas.
Pele scored 77 goals for Brazil.
Switzerland stayed perfect in qualifying by defeating Andorra 3-0 in a match interrupted by poor pitch conditions under heavy rain in St. Gallen.
The Swiss reached 21 points, three more than Portugal, and is guaranteed to finish first or second in the group. The winner automatically qualifies for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, while the runner-up has to go through a playoff.
Hungary stayed a distant third with 10 points after defeating last-placed Latvia 3-1 at home.
