Ronaldo and Messi feature in top six active international goalscorers

When it comes to international goalscorers, we are fortunate to be in an era stacked with living legends. 

Take a look at the all-time list of the deadliest finishers for their national teams and you will find that a high proportion are still playing and adding to their considerable tallies. 

Here are the top six active international goalscorers.

Robert Lewandowski (82 goals)

Robert Lewandowski's international career started back in 2008, when he scored on his debut in a World Cup qualifier against San Marino. 

Since then he has established himself as Poland's talisman, while building a reputation as one of the world's top strikers with the likes of Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich and his current club Barcelona. 

There are little signs of Lewandowski slowing down, with the Warsaw-born hitman having topped the LaLiga scoring charts in the 2022-23 campaign.

Romelu Lukaku (83 goals)

Romelu Lukaku debuted for Belgium in 2010 while at Anderlecht, netting his first two goals during a friendly against Russia in November of that year.

The Roma marksman became the Red Devils' all-time record scorer in November 2017 when he notched his 31st strike in a 1-0 win over Japan — achieving the feat at the age of just 24.

And Lukaku is showing absolutely no signs of slowing down, with the 30-year-old bagging four first-half goals in Belgium's final Euro 2024 qualifier against Azerbaijan.

Ali Mabkhout (84 goals)

Ali Mabkhout's first goals for the UAE came in a flurry, when he netted four times in a friendly against Bahrain in 2012. 

The forward, who has spent his entire career at Al Jazira, has not stopped scoring at international level and is at an age where he can be expected to extend his impressive record further. 

Mabkhout long ago became the UAE's all-time leading scorer, when he notched a hat-trick against Indonesia in 2019. 

Sunil Chhetri (93 goals)

The oldest player on this list is Sunil Chhetri, who scored on his debut for India in 2005, against their rivals Pakistan. 

Some 18 years later and the 5ft 7in attacker is still scoring on a regular basis for his country, for whom he is both the all-time record goalscorer and the most-capped player. 

Chhetri has spent most of his club career in India but has had short spells with Kansas City Wizards in Major League Soccer and Sporting in Portugal. 

Lionel Messi (106 goals)

As one of the greatest players to have ever graced the game, Lionel Messi has the sort of stellar international scoring record that you would expect from such a figure. 

Despite his astonishing achievements at club level, it took time for him to become a regular scorer for Argentina. Though he made his debut in 2005, it was not until 2012 that he became prolific. 

Messi's crowning glory came at the 2022 World Cup, where he scored seven goals in the tournament, including two in the final against France, which La Albiceleste won on penalties. 

Cristiano Ronaldo (128 goals)

Cristiano Ronaldo is not just the main man when it comes to current international goalscorers but is also out in front in the all-time list. 

A brace against the Republic of Ireland in September 2021 saw the forward overtake Iran's Ali Daei, with his 110th and 111th goals for Portugal. 

Still playing regularly for his country, Ronaldo has further extended a record that will be extremely difficult for anyone to surpass, with the former Real Madrid star having made his debut way back in 2003.