Cristiano Ronaldo raised his left arm and pointed toward the sky following his goal for Manchester United Saturday that gave the Portugal star his 100th in Premier League competition.
The subdued celebration unfolded five days after he and his partner, Georgina Rodriguez, announced one of their newborn twins had died. Ronaldo did not play in Tuesday’s game while the couple was grieving the loss.
The goal in the 34th minute off his left foot while redirecting a deep cross from teammate Nemanja Matic trimmed Arsenal’s lead to 2-1, but Manchester wound up losing, 3-1, at Emirates Stadium in London.
Arsenal fans had stood and applauded Ronaldo in the seventh minute in a show of solidarity for Manchester United’s famed No. 7 days after the tragedy.
Ronaldo became the fourth player in Premier League history to score 100 goals for Manchester United. It came in his 223rd appearance in the EPL.
Other United players to have scored 100 goals for the club are Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Wayne Rooney, each playing in considerably more games than Ronaldo.