Ronaldo praises Pele and claims to have surpassed Brazil legend as world's top scorer

Cristiano Ronaldo has paid tribute to Pele after claiming he has surpassed the Brazilian as the top scorer in football history.

There was speculation that Ronaldo had surpassed Pele a few weeks ago when netting his 758th career goal.

However, Pele’s club Sao Paulo said the Brazilian’s total did not include nine goals for the State Team and one for the Military Team, which took his figure to 767.

Ronaldo netted a hat-trick in Juventus’ 3-1 win over Cagliari on Sunday to take his tally to 770, and he took to acknowledge the record and praise Pele.

“Today, as I reach the 770 official goal in my professional career, my first words go straight to Pele,” Ronaldo said. “There’s no player in the world who hasn’t been raised listening to stories about his games, his goals and his achievements, and I’m no exception.

AND FOR THAT REASON, I’M FILLED WITH JOY AND PRIDE AS I ACKNOWLEDGE THE GOAL THAT PUTS ME ON TOP OF THE WORLD’S GOALSCORING LIST, OVERCOMING PELE’S RECORD, SOMETHING THAT I COULD NEVER HAVE DREAMED OF WHILE GROWING UP AS A CHILD FROM MADEIRA.

Pele was quick to respond, taking to say: "Congratulations on breaking my record of goals in official matches."

The official record is shrouded in mystery, with others claiming Josef Bican and Romario have scored the most goals in official matches.

There has been speculation about Ronaldo’s future following Juventus’ Champions League exit at the hands of Porto, but the Portugal international has reaffirmed his commitment to the Old Lady of Italian football.

He said: “Now I can’t wait for the next games and challenges!

“The next records and trophies! Believe me, this story is still far from being over.

“The future is tomorrow and there’s still a lot to win for Juventus and Portugal!”