Ronaldo's record-setting hat-trick powers United to wild win over Spurs

Cristiano Ronaldo's 59th career hat-trick gave Manchester United a scrappy 3-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur on the same day the Portuguese superstar smashed the record for most goals scored by a male player in competitive fixtures.

United blew 1-0 and 2-1 leads at Old Trafford on Saturday before Ronaldo headed home the winner in the 82nd minute.

The treble lifted his career haul to a record 807 goals.

The result temporarily pushes the Red Devils into fourth in the Premier League table on 50 points. Arsenal, just two points behind with four games in hand, can reclaim fourth place Sunday with a win over Leicester City.

United needed Ronaldo at his best after a contentious few weeks that threw his future at the club into doubt. The 37-year-old hadn't scored in his last 10 matches, and manager Ralf Rangnick conceded Friday he wasn't sure if Ronaldo was still happy at United. The star striker, who missed United's 4-1 defeat to Manchester City last weekend because of a hip injury, reportedly traveled home to Portugal to recuperate without informing Rangnick.

But Ronaldo roared back to life Saturday, unleashing an unstoppable shot from around 25 yards to hand United an early advantage. But the visitors wrestled control of possession and won a penalty - which Harry Kane converted - when Dejan Kulusevski's cross struck Alex Telles' arm in the 34th minute.

Ronaldo later became the most prolific scorer in men's football history minutes with a simple tap-in from Jadon Sancho's cross. The goal was the 806th of Ronaldo's career, lifting him past previous scoring leader Josef Bican in FIFA's official records.

Tottenham drew level once more in the 72nd minute when Harry Maguire steered Sergio Reguilon's cross into his own net. But Ronaldo rose tallest to nod in Telles' corner kick, cementing the result before drawing a standing ovation from a crowd that included seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady.