Cristiano Ronaldo scored after four minutes to become the leading European international goal-scorer of all time as Portugal beat Morocco.

One the tournament’s star performers so far picked up where he left off after his hat-trick against Spain in Portugal’s opening 3-3 Group B draw, heading Fernando Santos’ men into an early lead with a goal that moved him to 85 international goals – one ahead of the legendary Ferenc Puskas in the all-time standings.

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Morocco head coach Renard came into the game having seen his players denied a point after dominating much of their opening encounter against Iran and they were largely the better side here too, keeping Portugal on the back foot and quelling the threat of Ronaldo for long periods.

Renard was involved in discussions with officials over two rejected first-half penalty claims but his side created enough chances to score from open play had they been more accurate in front of goal.

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Portugal once again relied upon Ronaldo to produce their best moments and the weaknesses evident throughout the rest of Santos’ team belie their pre-tournament billing as one of the favourites.

Morocco will have the chance to restore some pride by claiming a result from their final Group B game against Spain and will then head home disappointed not to have had more to show for two good displays in Russia, while Portugal took a huge step towards the last 16.