Cristiano Vs. Messi (20 Oct ’23) That's right, one out of Ronaldo and Messi could easily go down as the greatest player ever. Yes. Better than Pele and Maradona? Yes. Better than all the Brazilian greats, England greats, Netherlands greats, Italian greats, Spanish greats, and even German greats? Yes. So how do we determine who is the best between both legends who just happened to be born in the same generation? Not just that but be at their prime in the same era and dominate Ballon d'Or awards, every other individual awards, club teams and national teams' trophies. Head-to-head comparisons read like greatest hits. 12 Ballon d’Or’s combined between them. With Messi winning 7 to Ronaldo's 5. (I think messi will win his eight in this year because he win world cup) Even though most people claim the Ballon d’Or is no longer the right measurement of the best player in the world - case in point: Luka Modric winning over Ronaldo, or Messi winning over Lewandowski. And they have a valid argument. However, other than Ballon d’Or, there are other ways to compare these two legends to determine who is the best of the best of the best. Ronaldo Cristiano was a fledgling in Sporting Lisbon. Despite being a fledgling, he was already garnering accolades and admiration from youth coaches all over the big leagues. But even at such a young age, he was already becoming bigger than Sporting and was obviously destined for greater things across the border. He is the first player to play for Sporting Lisbon's under-16, under-17 and under-18 teams, the B team and the first team, all within a single season. He caught the eyes of Alex Ferguson and the rest is history. Cristiano tasted Superstardom for the first time in Man United colours. Manchester United could have kept Ronaldo a bit longer if they had thrown their support 100% behind him and wholeheartedly picked him over Rooney. But Ferguson thought he could keep both young stars-- after all, he was Ronaldo's English Dad. Alas, his plans backfired horribly, and publicly it looked like Ronaldo was becoming bigger than Man U just like he was with Sporting Lisbon. And even if he was not bigger than Man U, it looked like Manchester United were preventing him from achieving his childhood dreams and becoming a Galactico. A continuing theme in his beautiful career. So, Ronaldo unceremoniously left for Real Madrid where he became a Mega-Global Superstar. His greatest hits tour matched on to Juventus after he seemed to be bigger than Real Madrid, and it looked like Real Madrid was trying to curtail his achievements when all he wanted was to conquer the entire world. After all, he was Ronaldo of the backto-back-to-back Champions League- la Decima. So, he was unceremoniously shipped out to Italy where he topped the scoring charts, and acquired more hardware but not the elusive 6th Champions League trophy. He got bigger than Juventus and couldn't stomach their losing ways. Who were they to rob him of his yearly league trophies- with their low-mentality young stars? So, he unceremoniously flirted with Manchester City before returning to Manchester United and reclaiming his formerly cursed number 7 jersey. Again, it looks as if Ronaldo is becoming bigger than Manchester United as a current brand- even worse, Manchester United players make his former Italian teammates look like bulls and stallions. But no matter how his career turns out now- Ronaldo's legacy is set and he's guaranteed a top 5 place in the history of professional football-- at a minimum. Wherever he went, Mr. Ronaldo dominated. Any league, any rules, any system. Messi The little kid from Rosario, who was Argentinian but at his football heart- a Spaniard. His story starts at age six when he joined Newell's Old Boys and just dominated. During the six years he played for Newell's, he scored almost 500 goals. Health and financial issues put him in Barca's path, and as a huge fan of Ronaldo Nazario- he was bound to be interested. His exploits continued at Barcelona's youth academy, La Masia. Next, he completely dominated as an integral part of the "Baby Dream Team" and Barcelona's greatest-ever youth team. Messi rapidly progressed through the club's ranks- Juveniles to Barcelona C, to Barcelona B to first team, starting eleven and Superstardom. To the tune of four UEFA Champions Leagues, ten La Liga, 7 Ballon d’Or and a host of other majestic accolades. He is also a brand of himself and has excelled everywhere he went- until lately. Unlike Ronaldo, Messi has never been bigger than any of his clubs. And PSG is not a stumbling block to Messi's legacy. While Ronaldo is languishing in the Europa League, on an average-to-medium team with no obvious direction-- Messi is on an enviably stacked team which is expected to win almost all their domestic honor’s and is a strong contender for the current Champions League. In short, Messi's place is set forever in the Mount Rushmore of soccer legends. Parameters Cristiano and Messi will be evaluated based on the following parameters: head to head-to-head stats, Individual Awards, Goals, Club Honors, International Career, Playing Style, Dominance Across Leagues, Brand/Marketability, Current Football Value, and Outlook/Future. A score will be kept throughout each analysis and finally, the tally will determine the winner. You are welcome to my world. Head-to-Head Stats Messi and Ronaldo have played against each other on 34 occasions, the majority being El Classico match-ups – and it’s the Barcelona legend that has the edge over his contemporary with 15 wins to Ronaldo’s 10 Planet Football. Edge- Messi Individual Awards Messi has 6 FIFA World Player of the Year to Ronaldo's 5. As alluded to earlier, Messi has 7 Ballon d'Or to Ronaldo's 5. Messi has 6 European golden shoes, while Ronaldo has 4. Ronaldo has been Champions League Top Scorer 7 times to Messi's 6. Messi has been the top scorer in his league 8 times (La Liga only) while Ronaldo has been the top scorer in his league 5 times (3 different top leagues). Messi has a Laureus Award - Sportsman of the Year award, while Ronaldo has the highly coveted FIFA Best Special Award (for international goals record). Both have 1 UEFA Club Footballer of the Year. Ronaldo has been UEFA Best Player 3 times to Messi's 2. Messi has won La Liga Best Player 6 times to Ronaldo's 1. Prolific Ronaldo has 1 La Liga Best Goal while Messi has none. Messi has won 3 Mundo Deportivo La Liga MVPs, while Ronaldo countered with 2 Serie A Footballer of the Year (AIC), 1 Serie A MVP, 2 Premier League Player of the Season, and 2 PFA Players' Player of the Year awards. Messi has 1 FIFA World Cup Golden Ball and Ronaldo has none, unfortunately. However, Ronaldo has 1 FIFPro World Player of the Year and Messi has none. Both have 15 amazing appearances on the FIFPro World XI; however, Ronaldo has the edge with the only FIFA Puskas Award between both legends. And finally, each has 5 World Soccer Best Player awards. Unfortunately, there is not enough space on this medium to include all their individual awards but the above are some of the highlights. Edge- Messi Goals Both men are goal machines which is one of the reasons for their legendary status. Messi has scored 691 goals in his senior club career and has the most goals by a player for a single club. Cristiano Ronaldo has scored a staggering 117 international goals for Portugal- he is the top goal scorer in men’s international football. He is the top goal scorer in the UEFA Champions League (140 goals). Ronaldo also has 700 club goals- a milestone he just achieved to the delight of all Man United fans planet-wide. Messi has bagged 781 career goals in total while Ronaldo has 817. Edge- Ronaldo Club Honors Ronaldo has 5 Champions League winners’ medals, 7 League titles, 6 Domestic cups, 3 UEFA Super cups, 7 Domestic Super cups, and 4 Club World cups. Messi has 4 Champions League winners’ medals, 11 League titles, 7 Domestic cups, 9 Domestic super cups, 3 UEFA Super cups, 3 Club world cups, and 2 astonishing Continental Trebles. Obviously, Messi benefited from playing for a long time in a single team built around him. Edge- Messi International Career Both men have 2 trophies each for their respective international teams although neither is a World Cup. Messi won the 2022 Finalissima and 2021 Copa America. Ronaldo won the 2018/19 UEFA Nations League and 2016 UEFA European Championships. If it comes to a push- you can compare the level of competition in each international league. Edge- Ronaldo Playing Style This is an evaluation parameter where both players have distinct playing styles. Ronaldo in his prime was an explosive player who could blow past his helpless defender after one or two quick step-overs. An unapologetic dribbler who is not afraid to intentionally showboat with flair. However, Ronaldo expends a lot of energy with his playing style and this style does not age well. As Ronaldo gets older, he is no longer able to explosively blow past his defenders or outrun everyone on the field. His mind is willing, but his body is no longer able to replicate the skills of old. Messi plays Spanish tiki-tak football and can easily tap the ball between his legs forever without tiring too much or expending as much energy as an explosive Ronaldo. Fundamentally, Messi's playing style ages well, even when he's no longer able to blow past defenders or dribble everyone on the field. While Ronaldo is ageing and looks his age on the field, Messi's playing style allows him to tap the ball from one to the other while still looking his age. Edge- Messi Dominance Across Leagues Messi dominated La Liga for years, but that was it. However, Ronaldo has conquered the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A. Simply put, wherever Ronaldo went, he adapted and thrived. In any system, in any country, under any rules- Ronaldo proved he could deliver. Messi comes off as a system player who needs the right system constructed around him, with the manager clearly outlining everyone's role to them. Ronaldo walks into any team and just dominates. You do not need the coach to tell you who the team belongs to. It is obvious. Messi's ordeals in PSG reinforce this dilemma. Edge- Ronaldo Brand/Marketability Both Ronaldo and Messi are Soccer global superstars. Each has a massive brand and is any marketer's dream. Both command hundreds of millions in endorsement fees and always top the list of top-earning athletes. However, while Messi is strictly a soccer Superstar, Ronaldo is a mega Superstar. There are few fields in entertainment where Ronaldo will not easily adapt to and succeed. If he wants to tomorrow, he could start a band or become an actor- such is his magnetic charisma. Messi on the other handunfortunately lacks that appeal, and you would be hard-pressed to find another field where Messi would dominate in entertainment apart from Soccer. Not saying he is not media savvy or artistically talented, but you cannot teach what Ronaldo has- when it comes to mass appeal. You either got it or you don't. Edge- Ronaldo Current Football Value Messi while not at his prime is still an effective player, and you would not be shocked to hear that he is valued north of $50 million. Ronaldo on the other is worth less than $30 million, due to age and other factors. Edge- Messi Outlook Ronaldo's outlook looks bleak for such a former shining star. He does not want Europa League football and feels like Man United is not in line with his lofty goals of individual and team awards. However, no other big clubs want him. He has offers from Asia and MLS, otherwise, all the big leagues have steered clear of him. He has a reputation as a coach killer and someone who sulks a lot when things do not go his way. When he was in his prime, most big clubs would have tolerated his antics- but now his age is not worth the diva antics. The last image of Messi associated with Barcelona is him in tears trying to explain to the fans why he could not resign from the team. While personally and internally, he had his issues with Barcelona- it was mostly behind doors and there were no leaks by either the player or his agent. More teams would pay market value plus extra for Messi today than would for Ronaldo. Edge- Messi Tally The tally from our evaluation is 6 points for Messi and 4 points for Ronaldo. So, while you might be biased over whom you think is the greatest out of these two legends, the stats and the numbers slightly favour Messi over Ronaldo. Conclusion That being said, if I had to be reincarnated as a world-class athlete in any sport, I would easily pick Ronaldo without thinking twice. From the outside- it looks like Messi is performing a task while Ronaldo is engaged in a fun hobby. Maybe that is why the numbers slightly favour Messi.
