WATCH: On this day 21 years ago, Cristiano Ronaldo makes his debut for Portugal

On 20^th August 2003, Cristiano Ronaldo made his debut for Portugal. During the Kazakhstan 18-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo played for the first time for Portugal coming as an substitute of another legendary player Luis Figo at half-time when the scores were at 0-0. The instant Ronaldo touched the ball, his skill was evident as his cunning was too much for the Kazhakstani defense to handle. The game's lone goal was scored by Simao, but Ronaldo stole the show for 45 minutes with an outstanding performance. 

Following that, Cristiano Ronaldo received a call-up for the Portugal 2004 European Championship. His nation's first goal came in a 2-1 group stage loss to eventual champions Greece. Ronaldo scored two goals, provided two assists, and was selected for the tournament's squad at the 2004 Euro. When Ronaldo scored his first goal against Iran in 2006, Portugal progressed to the World Cup semifinals.

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In 2007 Cristiano Ronaldo was appointed as Portugal captain to guide his country's international success. But Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo both had to wait until 2016 for their first international trophy as they won UEFA Euro 2016 by defeating France in extra-time but due to injury Cristiano Ronaldo had to be substituted in the 25^th minute of the match and had to see the match while been on the bench. Later in 2019 Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo won the UEFA Nations League trophy against the Netherlands in the final.

Cristiano Ronaldo has set a legacy while playing for Portugal

Since making his debut 21 years ago Cristiano Ronaldo is the most capped player for Portugal as he has made 212 appearances for his nation and scored 130 goals. He also has 36 assists and has nine hat-tricks to his name. Now the Portuguese star is one of the best footballer players in the world and has won many trophies in his career. 

Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo is now 39 and there is no sign of him slowing down by the time the next FIFA World Cup will come in 2026 Cristiano Ronaldo will be 42 and is likely to play 6^th FIFA World Cup. The 2022 FIFA World Cup was Cristiano Ronaldo was 5^th FIFA World Cup making him the first player to play in five different editions.