At 27 years of age, Portugal talisman Cristiano Ronaldo will become one of the youngest European soccer players to reach 100 caps when he suits up against Northern Ireland in Lisbon on Tuesday. Only Germany's Lukas Podolski and Estonia's Kristen Viikmae have reached that milestone at a younger age.

"It was on August 20th, 2003, against Kazakhstan, that I put on our national shirt for the first time. It was one of the most memorable moments of my life and a path which I am proud of," Ronaldo wrote on his Facebook page. "On Tuesday, I will reach my 100th cap next to my people and only with a victory in mind. I would like to thank all of those who helped me reach this point and will pack the stadium cheering for us," Ronaldo wrote.

Ronaldo is already Portugal’s third-most capped player of all time, behind Luis Figo with 127 and Fernando Couto with 110. He is also second on the all-time scoring list with 37 goals. The 2008 World Player of the Year will captain the national team against Northern Ireland on Tuesday as the team tries to bounce back from a 1-0 loss away to Russia last Friday.