Top 5 Cristiano Ronaldo Hat-Tricks

#1 Portugal vs. Sweden (World Cup playoff 2013)

Ronaldo sent Portugal into the 2014 World Cup with his best ever hat-trick

Taking the No.1 spot is Ronaldo's hat-trick against Sweden in the World Cup play-off match which saw Portugal reach the World Cup finals in Brazil 2014 after a disappointing qualification campaign.

The game was played over two legs with the tie being dubbed as "Ronaldo vs. Ibrahimovic" with both teams boasting two world-class talents in their lineups.

Ronaldo had already scored in the first leg going into the match, nevertheless, there was more work to be done to seal Portugal's place in the World Cup and as in almost all the big games, Ronaldo didn't disappoint.

The game deserved the title of "Ronaldo vs. Ibrahimovic" as each player scored three goals and two goals respectively, but it was Ronaldo's Portugal that won overall.

Ronaldo's first goal came from an excellent through ball from Joao Moutinho from the halfway line with the Portuguese forward outpacing the Swedish defence and beautifully guiding the ball into the top right corner to put Portugal up 1-0

The game took a turn however with Sweden going 2-1 up courtesy of a brace from Ibrahimovic meaning Portugal's chance of qualification was less than certain.

Like on so many other occasions, however, Ronaldo ascended to the peak of his powers when his team needed him most and smashed the ball into the bottom right corner after being fed another through ball putting the game beyond doubt.

If that wasn't enough Ronaldo added insult to injury by completing an astonishing hat-trick by smashing the ball which hit the bar on its way in with this goal sending the stadium into a frenzy.

This hat-trick deserves the No.1 spot as it was perhaps his most meaningful one as it turned a poor world cup qualification campaign for Portugal into a valiant success story with Ronaldo demonstrating to any doubters that he could perform under pressure for any team highlighting why he was the best player in the world.