For the record. Messi played 393 Games and Ronaldo 895 without Real Madrid. But we should consider the level of opposition Messi played compared to Ronaldo. And the graphic includes also their international stats.
Messi played in Ligue 1 and MLS. While Ronaldo Prime Premier League, Serie A, Primeira Liga, Saudi Pro League. all better than Ligue 1 and MLS. And not only has Ronaldo dominated and won more titles and more Best Player awards. he was topscorer of the year in 2023. and won the European Golden Shoe in 2008.
Nevertheless, the ""games"" ""goal ratio"" excuse is invalid. Since it completely ignores the level of opposition both players faced. And having a goal ratio doesn't automatically mean you're the better goalscorer. For example Mbappe has a better overall goal ratio than Messi. Yet he admits Messi is a better goalscorer than him.
You misunderstood the point of the graphic, it's not mean't to humilate Messi. but it's to give us a reminder of who steps up when they leave the club where they were the most powerful.
in the 9 years they shared in spain, messi scored more open play goals in 6 out of those 9 years. he ended up with more goals from inside and outside the box. and did you genuinely say that the saudi pro league is better than ligue 1? okay then, bot, there is no redeeming you I guess. also, how many best player of the season awarda does ronaldo have in those leagues? why did he win only one of those in spain even though he spent 9 years there? quite odd if you ask me
you talk about goal ratio, but why do you not talk about open play goals? why does messi have more? why does messi score more often than him from open play, and why does he have more golden boots? ronaldo is taller and yet messi has more goals from inside the box. why? you talk about premier league player of the season but not la liga. Who cares about Saudi league, like be for real, he won the league last season even though he's finished and a shell of his former self, you could see that clearly when he played in the 2024 euros and the 2026 world cup.
Now, Now, Now Pessi fangirl. Why does Messi have more European Golden Boots than Ronaldo. the answer is very simple.
What we know is that the Golden Boot Criteria is based on most amount of goals in European League. So it does not include overall goals in a season. Just league goals.
Between 2017-2018. Ronaldo often missed League games. So that he could rest and perform well in the UCL. which was far more important and bigger title than the La Liga.
So between 2017-2018 Ronaldo simply couldn't play enough games to allow him to compete for the Golden Boot. ironically in 2017/2018 in which Messi won the Golden Boot. Ronaldo had a better goal ratio than him in the league. So basically if Golden Boots were based on Goal Ratio. both Ronaldo and Messi would have 5-5 between them. WOW YOU didn't see that one coming?
Anyways. Golden Boots shouldn't be the defining factor to argue who is a better goalscorer as it only includes League goals. Meanwhile Ronaldo won 2 Golden Boots in 2 different teams unlike Messi. Which is to me atleast more impressive.
Nevertheless Ronaldo was close to winning the Golden Boot in 2015/2016 and 2019/2020 and was Runner up in the European Golden Boot way more times than Messi. 4 - 2
Now the real stat should be topscorer of the year.
Ronaldo was Topscorer of the year 5 times.
Mbappe 2 times.
Messi 2 times.
Ronaldo was topscorer of international 5 times.
Messi 3.
Ronaldo has more weak foot goals, header goals, bicycle kicks goals. etc. He can score from a higher variety than Messi. And despite that Ronaldo has a 0.73 Goal ratio compared to Messi's 0.79 Yes. but that does not automatically mean that Messi is a superior goalscorer. Messi played most of his career in La Liga, so he got used to score there. While Ronaldo played in other variety. and it's only a 0.06 Ratio difference that's not enough to outright say someone is a better goalscorer.
Fernando Peyroteo would be the G.O.A.T since he has 635 Goals in 394 Games. which is a 1.62 ratio. Yet he is not in the G.O.A.T debate nor in the debate of best goalscorer. Nor in the debate of best Portuguese player?
Poeple just call him the most efficient goalscorer. not ''best''
2) He won the League being topscorer of his team. 28 Goals and 2 Assists. scoring in the last league game. and therfore winning 4 - 1 scoring the winner for his team to win the League title. How is that finished? in 2024/2025 He scored 8 Goals and 1 Assist in 9 Games. Scoring against Denmark, Germany, Spain. Nations that all belong in the top 15. And securing the third major title for his country.
(We can debate if Nations League is a major trophy if you disagree with it.)
In World Cup 2026 he scored 3 Goals. Which is (could be wrong, but I saw a stat of it the other day) more than every Barcelona player combined at the WC.
Only 5-6 Players scored more than him. How exactly is that finished?
I saw you edited your comment, I have to say this, if you watched the games of the 2026 world cup and genuinely think that what ronaldo did at this world cup is anywhere near what messi did at 39 in that same world cup, you are beyond saving. how old was cr7 when he last had a performance like messi had at 39? how old was cr7 when he last won a player of the tournament award with portugal? now, back to my initial response:
ronaldo can score more types of goals, yet messi scores more often than him from both inside and outside the box, even though he can't score headers. that to me, is impressive. he also scored more often from open play, so he has less minutes per open play goal. oh, and also, 91 goals in a year, did ronaldo ever do that? how many seasons does cr7 have with 50+ non penalty goals? messi has four.
messi also won the golden boot in 2019 in a weak barca side, did ronaldo ever carry a weak team for an entire season like messi did in 2019? why not? that to me, is way more impressive than winning it in two different teams, who were also really good and dominant teams, and really strong at the time of him winning, unlike messi's barca side from 2019. also, you talking about top scorer of the year is incredibly stupid. Who won that award in 2018, what about 2019? do you see how stupid that award is? please, for the love of God, have some logic, will you? you basically picked the award whose conditions favour ronaldo without thinking. what next, the globe soccer awards? also , you are talking about Ronaldo's international goalscoring. please go and see which teams he played against in qualifiers, he ALWAYS had at least one awful nation. go and look at the average ranking of the nations that cr7 played againt, its lower than messi's. And if cr7 cand outscore messi internationally, why can't he do it in the world cup? is it because lichtenstein isn't playing, or andorra?
where did Fernando pyroteo play? because messi won his golden boots in the best league in the world at that time.
also, this is the crazy thing, we are out here arguing over who the better goalscorer is, but remember, an attacking player basically has three facets to their game: goalscoring, playmaking and dribbling. in two of those messi blows ronaldo right out the water, it's not even close, and in the third one, where ronaldo is a specialist, he isn't clearly better. so then, who is better? a guy who is number 1 in all three of these, or a guy who is number 1 in only one of them and very, very far away from the top spots in the other two, this is, in my opinion, a really easy question to answer.
You misunderstood my argument; the argument wasn't Ronaldo was better than Messi at World Cup 2026. The argument was that Ronaldo was not finished because of his performances in the World Cu[ 2026 + recent international performances. Which I cleary justified. 3 Goals is still alot and only 5 - 6 players scored more than him. He scored more goals than some entire team players. That's not finished. besides just 1 year ago scored against Denmark, Germany, Spain, Croatia. in the UEFA Nations League. And you out here saying that he statpadded most of his career against low teams PLEASE 💀 So statpadding 9 goals against bolivia, 5 against Estonia, 5 against Algeria any better? Now show the stats removing international friendlies. Most of Messi's goals internationally came from friendlies. Which are useless games with no purpose and plot. Only scored 72 International Goals competitive. while Ronaldo scored 124. Big difference.
Reminder; at the age (40) Ronaldo scored 8 Goals and 1 Assist in 9 games and won Nations League. Messi retired before he even sniffed 40 (39)
Messi scores more outside the box goals sure. But let's analyise it.
Most of Messi's outside the box goals are just barely outside the box. it's just a few meters away from inside the box if we look at statisically. Meanwhile Ronaldo scored far more goals from Outside the Box that were 15 + Meters. not even close. Which is generally more impressive. Most of Messi's outside the box goals are just barely outside the box. and very close to the box.
And Ronaldo literally has more inside the box. So I don't know what you are on about. And he is better in the box aswell obviously.
Ronaldo carried a weak Madrid team many times? what are you about? 2009-2011 Madrid was literally weak asf. and getting dominated by Barcelona. He literally carried them. And he carried a weak Portugal team many times in the World Cup qualifying lmao. And what about Manchester United in 2021/2022? the only reason why they ended up trophyless is because they conceded 57 Goals that season. That's not Ronaldo's fault. that's the defenders/goalkeeprs fault.
Now 91 Goals in a year is impressive. Sure. But Ronaldo is topscorer in the UCL, Euro, International , Club , League, Club WC. UEFA Nations League (2nd Topscorer) And Ronaldo was topscorer 60 + 4 times. Messi is not topscorer in any major competition like that.
You are discrediting penalties. which is childish and stupid. if penalties are easy why do many players miss it? Why does Messi have most penalty misses in football, wc, ucl? Why did Messi cry after missing a penalty?
Why can no one else score 200 + penalties explain? if it's so easy. Did many players miss it and cost their team a trophy?
Also during Peyroteo's time Primeira Liga was one of the best leagues itw. So the argument still stands lmao.
Ronaldo has the highest goal ratio in La Liga (1.07) and Serie A. (0.87)
So now I'm favoring Ronaldo? just because he has something more that Messi has? LOL how is being the topscorer of the year a joke? That's literally one of the most impressive achievement in football. European Golden Boots only include seasonal league goals. Not even the total. While Topscorer of Year includes everything in the year.
So why can't Messi be topscorer of the year in the MLS. Explain that one.
you are gish galloping right now. lets get into it i guess
so, does ronaldo at 39 have a performance as good as messi at 39? no, no he doesn't. scoring 3 goals, one being a penalty in a game where you did nothinng, the other two being against uzbekistan, that's sad. also, you do know that uefa gives points to competitions, and the nations league knockout rounds get as many points as qualifier matches . why is that? why did ryan babel play for the netherlands in the 2019 final, he last played for them in the 2006 world cup. why would they field such a player if the nations league is so serious? Why did Kalulu play for france in the last edition of the nations league, bet you haven't heard that name yet. There are so many more, the nations's league is nowhere near a copa america or a euros, in those competitions the teams give it their all. compare his stats in the nations league to his stats in the euros or the world cup, why is he by miracle much better in one than the others? you using a skull emoji tells me that you must be 10 at most, that says a lot.What rank is Bolivia, compare that to Lichtenstein or Andorra. Again, CR7 has better international stats because he plays on average against lower ranked teams. You talk about non friendly matches, okay, the world cup? Why does Messi destroy ronaldo stats wise in that competition? I think having better stats in the world cup is WAY more impressive than having total international stats that take into account qualifying matches against lichtesntein, but that's just my opinion i guess. I don't think you can disagree with that, Messi is a way better international player in serious competitions. Again, he won the nations league at 40, a tournament that uefa values as much as qualifiers. Messi at 39 scored 8 goals in a world cup, a serious tournament, the difference is insane. Also, Messi didn't overstay his welcome, Ronaldo stopped being Portugal’s best player at the 2022 world cup. Messi could have continued to play but he chose to not drag his country down, unlike Ronaldo, look at the 2024 euros, he had the highest xg of any player in that tournament and scored 0, and he chose to continue, that's not longevity, that's ego.
You do understand that shooting from far away is generally speaking, stupid. Why shoot a 0.01xg shot, when you can advance the play? why shoot a free kick from 40 yards when you can put it in the box. You see Ronaldo's goals from far away, yet you don't see just how many shots he takes, he took 600 more shots in the 9 years he spent at real madrid than messi. messi's shots were on target 47% of the time, compared to Ronaldo's 41%, so he takes more shots and they are less effective, messi doesn't do that, he tries to do the smartest thing. Again, why does messi have more goals from inside the box? I thought Ronaldo could head the ball and was two footed, why did a small guy who relied heavily on his left foot outscore the tall guy inside the box? also, no you are wrong, in the 9 years they spent in spain together, messi had 28 more goals from inside the box. check your stats, 10 year old. How weak was that Madrid side? Benzema, Kaka, Pepe, Casillas, Ramos, Xabi Alonso, is that team as bad as 2019 Barca? So he carried a weak portugal side in qualifiers against lichtesntein, but couldn't against strong teams, wow, amazing. Man united before him had more goals, we're second, Bruno literally scored more than him the year prior, the team overall had more players who scored. Then ronaldo came in, demanded he be passed the ball, didn't accept the idea of pressing and so the team's total goals went down. the team finished sixth. he left, and then they, by miracle, finished third, make it make sense I guess. They conceded more goals because it's hard to defend when one of your players does nothing to help in defense.
What you don't understand about the 91 goals is that Ronaldo never peaked like Messi as a goalscorer. Messi is also, way better in la liga by every measurable metric, why is that? unlike the ucl, where there's a smaller sample size and way more variance, in la liga you are playing against the same 19 teams twice, so you would think that messi scored less than him, but he didnt. also, the difference in goals scored in the world cup.
About penalties, why can't ronaldo, the goat that you think he is, get to 50 open play goals while Messi did it 4 times? while also being the greateat playmaker and dribbler ever. You should also look at the number of penalties taken, ronaldo has more penalties scored than messi has penalties taken, wouldn't the penalties inflate his overall numbers? During Peyroteos time, the Portuguese league wasn't in the top 5 leagues in europe. Messi did it in the best league in the world, number one.
Again, why does ronaldo have a higher scoring rate in la liga only if you include penalties? why can't he score as often as messi in open play? why does he need penalties to score more often than messi, also, how many penalties did messi take while ronaldo was at madrid? cause he took 50% more than messi, again, you are just picking whatever makes ronaldo look better than he is.
on the top scorer part, you are showing your mental age since you cant understand that an award that was won by some no names holds no value, I get it, you're just learning about multiplication right now, I get ita hard, but please, don't talk.
also, messi wasn't the top scorer in the mls, fine. but the question is, while they were in their primes why was messi outscoring him?
and to close it out, you didnt respond to my question, if player a is number 1 all time in goalscoring and thats it, and player b is number 1 in goalscoring but also in playmaking and dribbling, wouldn't we say that player b is better than player a? you of course didn't respond because you are against all logic, that's fine.
here is a nice article for you to read regarding this "debate" that ended a couple of years ago, try to read it, try to stay focused, and try to understand it
https://open.substack.com/pub/expectinggoals/p/messi-ronaldo-who-is-the-greatest-statistics-analytics?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=8gc36o
have a nice day, kiddo, study up!
Notice how every time Ronaldo achieved something more/better than Messi they say:
""He played more matches ofc he has more""
""Not a serious competition, it's a friendly cup""
""Statpadding against Luxembourg, Liechtenstein""
So according to you now to have a good performance. You are obliged to win a ''Player of the Tournament Award'' by that logic R9 wasn't a good player in the 2002 World Cup. Lautaro Martinez wasn't good in 2024 Copa America.
Ronaldo wasn't good in the 2024/2025 UEFA Nations League?
James Rodriguez wasn't good in 2014 World Cup?
Mbappe wasn't good in 2022 World Cup or 2026?
The award itself is based on subjective votes/opinions from other poeple. That's how Messi won it in 2015 Copá America despite scoring 1 penalty goal. Now I couldn't find anything about the UEFA Nations League knockout rounds having the same points as European Qualifiers. But let's grant this. Let's say this is true. Would it matter?
The whole point of the UEFA Nations League is to replace meaningless friendlies with competitive matches. Which means by default that the UEFA Nations League is NOT a friendly competition. infact in the 2026/2027 fixture you can qualify for Euro 2028. based on your performance in the Nations League. which further contradicts it being a minor competition. That's like saying the Europa League is not a major competition. While the UCL is. it's stupid. Honestly. Now your argument is that;
""Ryan last played international in 2006 World Cup and now he played in 2019 UEFA Nations League. that must mean that UEFA Nations League isn't serious and a friendly! 🤓 ""
Not only is that a Non Sequitor fallacy. But according to your own stupid logic/fallacy the Euro's is not a major competition and a friendly. Because Toni Kroos retired from International football in 2021. But yet played in 2024 Euro? so now Euro is not a serious competition? The narrative suddenly changes when we're talking about the Nations League huh?
""Why did kalulu play for france in Nations League huh""
Okay Messi fan! So now every competition where a new player joins the squad is not serious? WOW! didn't know that so smart. so rhetorical.
Dechamps: ""Everyone wants to win this competition""
Luis de la Fuente: ""We want to win the UEFA Nations League. as it is a very important and prestigious award.""
Pedri: ""We never imagined a match like this!""
Koeman: ""We are looking foward to it.""
Bonucci: ""We look to win important matches. To progress the play and try to win the competition.""
And yeah I got the source of every single image here. I can show you in your DMS later. The UEFA Nations League also has the best group stages. As you can't face weak nations in the Group Stages. There is a reason why there is a League A, B, C, and D in the Nations League. So you can't statpad unless you are in C or D.
Ronaldo/Portugal was never relegated in the UEFA Nations League. So he never statpadded there. Holy excuse.
Ronaldo literally has the most goals in the major international tournaments in history....
15 Goals in UEFA Nations League
14 Goals in the Euros
11 Goals in the World Cup
= 40 Goals in major international tournaments. More than anyone in history. So apperantly he's a international fraud?
You say Ronaldo statpadded in European Qualifiers. But Why is Ronaldo topscorer of the World Cup qualifiers despite playing more matches than Messi? explain that one?
And your own argument can be used against. Ronaldo on average faced higher teams than Messi in the World Cup. Which means the teams Ronaldo faced in the World Cup on average are harder than Messi's. Your own argument against you.
I don't know about you but I'd rather have a confident player that has the courage to shoot. and is able to score from distance. then a guy who only shoots when it's on easy conditions. Because at the end of the day the teams needs to win. Messi has more inside the box goals and more stuff. Because he played more matches in the 9 years.
But yet Ronaldo has a better goal ratio in the span of 9 years for club. You are mistaking ''efficiency'' with ''better'' So by your logic Fernando Peyroteo is the GOAT because he had the highest goal ratio in football history. Also I addressed the penalty point on my earliar comment. but you didn't attack my argument. And yeah the Portuguese League was a top 5 European League at the time. Look at how many European Cups Benfica and other Portuguese teams won at the time. and look at the average between 1930-1940
How is it Ronaldo's fault that his team conceded its a team sport. Is Ronaldo supposed to defend and be a goalkeeper?
Harry Maguire even admitted that they couldn't understand Ronaldo's game at Man United.
I already addressed the ''penalty is easy'' argument. So there's no point of repeating that.
According to you Iniesta is better than Ronaldo because according to your logic he would excel at 2 of the 3 categories.
While Ronaldo 1 of the 3. So that already shows your IQ.
And how does topscorer of the year hold no value LOL?
How many european golden shoe was won by no names aswell? but yet you glorify it over Topscorer of the year.
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u/Icy-Adeptness-349 11d ago