© GiveMeSportCristiano Ronaldo is the king of hat-tricks!
Last Sunday evening, Cristiano Ronaldo scored the 57th hat-trick of his glittering career.
The Portuguese superstar went into the game against Cagliari having been heavily criticised for his role in Juventus' Champions League elimination at the hands of FC Porto.
But instead of letting his critics get the better of him, the 36-year-old responded in style on the pitch and his latest treble came in just 32 first half minutes.
It was a perfect hat-trick as well and Ronaldo's record of scoring three or more goals in a single game is scarcely believable.
Most players would be happy with 57 goals to their name at the very highest level, let alone 57 hat-tricks.
In the wake of Ronaldo's masterclass against Cagliari, Transfermarkt have listed the 50 players with the most hat-tricks for club and country in the 21st century.
Unsurprisingly, the Portuguese takes top spot and he's closely followed by his eternal rival Lionel Messi.
© Provided by Give Me Sport 50. Karim Benzema - 7
49. Didier Drogba - 7
48. Gareth Bale - 7
47. Robbie Keane - 7
46. David Villa - 7
45. Emmanuel Adebayor - 7
44. Carlos Tevez - 7
43. Edin Dzeko - 8
42. Raul - 8
41. Samuel Eto'o - 8
© Provided by Give Me Sport 40. Antonio Di Natale - 8
39. Jermain Defoe - 8
38. Wissam Ben Yedder - 8
37. Kylian Mbappe - 8
36. Erling Haaland - 8
35. Fernando Torres - 9
34. Miroslav Klose - 9
33. Wayne Rooney - 9
32. Claudio Pizarro - 9
31. Dimitar Berbatov - 9
© Provided by Give Me Sport 30. Aleksandr Kerzhakov - 9
29. Pauleta - 9
28. Marc Janko - 9
27. Robin van Persie - 10
26. Dries Mertens - 10
25. Michael Owen - 10
24. Flippo Inzaghi - 10
23. Radamel Falcao - 10
22. Mateja Kezman - 10
21. Dirk Kuyt - 11
© Provided by Give Me Sport 20. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - 11
19. Thierry Henry - 11
18. Ruud van Nistelrooy - 11
17. Neymar - 11
16. Roberto Soldado - 11
15. Bas Dost - 11
14. Alan Carvalho - 11
13. Gonzalo Higuain - 12
12. Roy Makaay - 12
11. Jonathan Soriano - 14
© Provided by Give Me Sport 10. Edinson Cavani - 15
9. Harry Kane - 15
8. Zlatan Ibrahimovic - 17
7. Sergio Aguero - 18
6. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar - 18
5. Mario Gomez - 18
4. Robert Lewandowski - 24
3. Luis Suarez - 29
2. Lionel Messi - 54
1. Cristiano Ronaldo - 57
© Provided by Give Me Sport Between them, Ronaldo and Messi have scored 111 hat-tricks, a combined record that defies description.
No other player has managed to score more than 30 in the 21st century, with Suarez's valiant effort of 29 the closest to the superstar duo.
Ronaldo and Messi really have mastered the art of goalscoring like no other player has done in the history of the sport.
To score at the rate they have when lining up against high-quality defences week in week out is remarkable and we may never see it repeated.