Cristiano Ronaldo insists his latest personal milestone is only significant because it earned Manchester United a vital three points in the race for Champions League football.
The veteran striker, 37, scored the 60th hat-trick of his decorated career as the Red Devils edged out Norwich City 3-2 on Saturday afternoon. The result was an important one because United came into the fixture in poor form having lost 1-0 at Everton and drawn 1-1 with Leicester.
Further, the two other big players in the Premier League top-four contest dropped points in their own fixtures with Tottenham losing 1-0 at home to Brighton and Arsenal beaten 1-0 at Southampton. Just three points separate the trio of clubs as the dramatic run-in begins to hit its stride.
Ronaldo took to Instagram after the victory over the Canaries to pledge United will "fight until the end" for a spot in Europe's premier club competition while also playing down the personal significance of his latest treble. "Very happy with this win and for getting us back on track in the Premier League," the Portugal captain wrote.
"Like I said before, individual achievements are only worth it when they help us reach our goals as a team, and the 60th hat-trick in my career is so much more important because it brought us the 3 points. Well done, lads, tremendous effort from everyone. We're not giving up, we're fighting until the end!" Ronaldo's hat-trick against bottom-club Norwich took his tally to 21 goals in 34 appearances this season, ensuring he has scored at least 20 times in each of the last 17 campaigns.
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The five-time Ballon d'Or winner was praised by David de Gea after the match but the goalkeeper admitted United are not operating at an acceptable level. "Ronaldo has scored three very important goals for us," the Spaniard told BBC Sport MOTD. "We know we aren't playing very well but we got three points. We should control the game more against Norwich at home.
"A massive win for us. We still have a chance to finish top four and we have to fight for it. We will fight for the top four until the last second." De Gea's concerning verdict on United's performance was echoed by interim manager Ralf Rangnick, who suggested his side were overly reliant on Ronaldo. "The way we played was not good enough," the German said. "It is a question of intensity and physicality. Like against Tottenham, Ronaldo was very crucial. They weren't easy goals, it was just outstanding. It doesn't make sense to be interested in the other results, we have to take care of our own results."
