Cristiano Ronaldo: Real Madrid claim forward has the record

Image source, Reuters

Image caption, Cristiano Ronaldo was given a trophy by the club in a presentation on Friday

Is Cristiano Ronaldo Real Madrid's record goalscorer? His club says yes. Uefa's official statistics say no.

The Portuguese forward scored twice in Tuesday's Champions League game against Malmo and Real say that took him past Raul's club record of 323.

Ronaldo, 30, who also took his career tally to 501 goals, was honoured by the club on Friday, while Raul has sent a congratulatory message.

The confusion centres around a goal scored in September 2010.

The Spanish giants credit Ronaldo with a free-kick scored against Real Sociedad, despite the fact the effort was deflected in by team-mate Pepe, who was given the goal by La Liga.

However, given Ronaldo's ratio of scoring more than one goal a game at Real - his 323 goals have come in 308 games - he may end the doubt in Sunday's derby at Atletico Madrid.

After the Malmo game, Ronaldo said: "I'm very happy, this is a special moment. I'd like to thank my team-mates for helping me reach this number.

"Breaking this record at the best club in the world is a real honour for me."

And on his message from Raul, Ronaldo added: "Raul is a person I deeply admire.

"He sent me a message to congratulate me. I'm delighted and I'm certain Raul is happy too because he sincerely told me that me breaking the record was a wonderful moment."

On Tuesday night, Real manager Rafael Benitez said: "If we're talking about the history of Real Madrid and the club's goalscorers, it's worth pointing out that he has needed less time to achieve this feat and that makes what he's doing all the more remarkable."