Cristiano Ronaldo claimed goalscoring was in his DNA after his stunning hat- trick sealed Real Madrid’s place in the Champions League semi-finals.
Real headed into Tuesday’s quarter-final second-leg hoping to become only the third team in the tournament’s history to overcome a two-goal first leg deficit.
And Wolfsburg were unable to keep Real’s talisman as bay as his first-half brace cancelled out the Bundesliga side’s advantage inside 17 minutes, before his 77th-minute strike booked Real’s place in a sixth-successive European semi-final.
It proved to be yet another memorable night in the glittering career of the Portuguese star as he became the first player to score three hat-tricks in Europe’s elite club competition in a single season.
“It had to be a magic night and it was,” Ronaldo said. “It was the perfect game in the end.
“Goals are in my DNA and I want to keep scoring them for the team.”
Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane hailed his side’s collective effort, but reserved special praise for Ronaldo.
“He is showing what he is, which is the best player in the world,” said the Frenchman.
“Cristiano needs the whole team, I want to speak about the team because they achieved this together.
“But he is special because not everyone is capable of scoring three goals.”
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