The highest scoring XI in the history of international football

Give Me Sport – LONDON, Cristiano Ronaldo is closing in on Ali Daei’s record for the most international goals scored.

The 36-year-old failed to add to his tally of 102 strikes in Portugal’s 1-0 victory over Azerbaijan on Wednesday evening, but it seems inevitable that he’ll surpass Daei’s haul of 109 for Iran.

When he does so, it’ll be one of Ronaldo’s most incredible goalscoring achievements and it’s a feat that his eternal rival Lionel Messi probably won’t get anywhere near.

However, the Argentine’s 71 goals for his country are enough for a place on the right-wing in our XI made up of international football’s record goalscorers.

Of course, Ronaldo and Daei feature alongside the Barcelona man and you can check out our team in full below.

All stats sourced from Transfermarkt.

Formation: 4-4-2

GK – Jose Luis Chilavert (Paraguay)

Games: 74

Goals: 8

What a record. Amazingly, four of Chilavert’s eight goals came during Paraguay’s successful 2002 World Cup qualification campaign.

RB – Darijo Srna (Croatia)

Games: 134

Goals: 22

A top player in his prime. Srna retired from international duty in 2016 with a record of a goal every six games to his name. Impressive stuff.

CB – Fernando Hierro (Spain)

Games: 89

Goals: 29

One of the greatest defenders of all time. The Real Madrid legend represented Spain at four World Cups and managed his country at the 2018 edition of the tournament.

CB – Sergio Ramos (Spain)

Games: 178

Goals: 23

As well as scoring a lot of goals on the international scene, Ramos has won a World Cup and two European Championships with Spain.

LB – Dusit Chalermsan (Thailand)

Games: 96

Goals: 14

Neither USA’s DaMarcus Beasley or Bahrain’s Salman Isa, who are oddly listed as left-backs on TM, played in defence very often, so despite scoring less goals than them, we’ve chosen Chalermsan. The Thai defender helped his country to fourth-place at the Asian Games in both 1998 and 2002.

RM – Lionel Messi (Argentina)

Games: 142

Goals: 71

Despite failing to win a trophy with Argentina, Messi’s goalscoring record is brilliant. Brazilian legend Pele (77) is the only South American who’s scored more international goals than the Barcelona icon.

CM – Zico (Brazil)

Games: 72

Goals: 52

One of Brazil’s greatest ever players, which is saying something. Zico excelled for his country and the midfield magician is also Flamengo’s leading scorer with a ridiculous 508 goals for the club.

CM – Karim Bagheri (Iran)

Games: 87

Goals: 50

A goalscoring machine from midfield. In 1997, Bagheri netted seven times in one match against the Maldives and finished that year with 20 goals to his name in just 15 international appearances. Incredible stuff.

LM – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)

Games: 171

Goals: 102

Ronaldo’s record for Portugal is simply incredible. Unlike Messi, the Juventus superstar has also triumphed on the international stage, winning both Euro 2016 and the inaugural UEFA Nations League.

ST – Ali Daei (Iran)

Games: 149

Goals: 109

The man Ronaldo has in his sights. Daei’s most prolific year with Iran came in 1996, when he scored 22 goals in just 18 appearances.

ST – Mokhtar Dahari (Malaysia)

Games: 138

Goals: 85

The man nicknamed ‘Supermokh’ is the third-highest scorer in men’s international football. In 1975, Dahari was named The Best Asian Striker by World Soccer after helping Malaysia win a bronze medal at the 1974 Asian Games.