Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi - Who is the better footballer?

[PetroDollars]

Ronaldo is without a doubt the most overrated player I've seen any sport.

Nothing but a PR hype job. His ******* go on about team trophies when he's individually won squat and use that as proof of him being the GOAT. What a great joke. Pele wrecks him when it comes to that so does Maradona, this is why it's always been Messi vs Pele vs Maradona and despite playing for the three biggest teams in the world, the majority of the world still considers Messi the best.

If you think Ronaldo is over rated you dont know anything about football and should just stop there.



Also the 'myth' of majority of the world considering Messi the best is just that a 'myth' created by his fan boys. The majority of the world voted 5 times for Ronaldo to be Ballon D'or while Messi was playing football. Hardly shows the world thinking Messi is better.

 

[Aman]

If you think Ronaldo is over rated you dont know anything about football and should just stop there.



Also the 'myth' of majority of the world considering Messi the best is just that a 'myth' created by his fan boys. The majority of the world voted 5 times for Ronaldo to be Ballon D'or while Messi was playing football. Hardly shows the world thinking Messi is better.

Check any poll, or vids where managers or experts are asked.

Only ones who think he's better are ex teammates or his delusional fan boys who even know it deep down. If the man looked like Rooney he would have 1 BdO.

Inspiration to #2s everywhere who have put him on a pedestal because they can't stand the idea that hard work cannot beat god given talent.

 

[Aman]

I cannot wait to see Haaland erase Ronaldo from history.

Unlike Messi, Ronaldo ain't got nothing other than goals so it will be fairly easy for a prolific goalscorer to remove Muller 0.01.

Prolific goalscorers come around often, genius which is elite in every attacking facet does not.

 

[Aman]

It's going to be so funny to see half of Ronaldo's glory hunter fan boys jump onto the Haaland bandwagon and the other half criticize him as he takes their heroes records one by one and erases him from football history.

 

[Mamoon]

I cannot wait to see Haaland erase Ronaldo from history.

Unlike Messi, Ronaldo ain't got nothing other than goals so it will be fairly easy for a prolific goalscorer to remove Muller 0.01.

Prolific goalscorers come around often, genius which is elite in every attacking facet does not.

Messi vs Ronaldo is not even a comparison at an individual level. Messi without his goals is a genius playmaker, while Ronaldo without his goals is nothing special.

Messi is basically Ronaldo + Zidane/Xavi/Iniesta/Platini/Cruyff rolled into one.

The world has never and most likely will never see a more talented and complete footballer.

However, it is far too early to talk about Haaland overtaking Ronaldo. Haaland is scoring goals at a ridiculous rate, but Ronaldo’s consistency over a decade has only been surpassed by the GOAT. Haaland would require incredible fitness, consistency and motivation to keep up with that scoring rate for such a long period of time.

Unfortunately, he has caught the same bug as Ronaldo and Zlatan, where he thinks that hopping from one league to another will help enhance his status. He hasn’t been at Dortmund for more than a month and he is already talking about playing for multiple clubs in his career.

 

[Aman]

Messi vs Ronaldo is not even a comparison at an individual level. Messi without his goals is a genius playmaker, while Ronaldo without his goals is nothing special.

Messi is basically Ronaldo + Zidane/Xavi/Iniesta/Platini/Cruyff rolled into one.

The world has never and most likely will never see a more talented and complete footballer.

However, it is far too early to talk about Haaland overtaking Ronaldo. Haaland is scoring goals at a ridiculous rate, but Ronaldo’s consistency over a decade has only been surpassed by the GOAT. Haaland would require incredible fitness, consistency and motivation to keep up with that scoring rate for such a long period of time.

Unfortunately, he has caught the same bug as Ronaldo and Zlatan, where he thinks that hopping from one league to another will help enhance his status. He hasn’t been at Dortmund for more than a month and he is already talking about playing for multiple clubs in his career.

This is why I'm laughing my *** off at it all. I knew a goalscorer would eventually come around but so soon lol. Messi fans have nothing to worry about with Haaland because we know Messi is more than a goalscorer and no number of goals will make up the gap in their abiltiies, not the case with Ronaldo who is only known for his goalscoring. And here we are with a young player who is shattering goalscoring records and loves scoring goals.

May, I don't mind it. That's another area he'll erase Ronaldo in, I'm going to enjoy seeing the circles his fans his fans go through to explain their way out of it and justify Ronaldo as GOAT.

 

[Aman]

Messi vs Ronaldo is not even a comparison at an individual level. Messi without his goals is a genius playmaker, while Ronaldo without his goals is nothing special.

Messi is basically Ronaldo + Zidane/Xavi/Iniesta/Platini/Cruyff rolled into one.

The world has never and most likely will never see a more talented and complete footballer.

However, it is far too early to talk about Haaland overtaking Ronaldo. Haaland is scoring goals at a ridiculous rate, but Ronaldo’s consistency over a decade has only been surpassed by the GOAT. Haaland would require incredible fitness, consistency and motivation to keep up with that scoring rate for such a long period of time.

Unfortunately, he has caught the same bug as Ronaldo and Zlatan, where he thinks that hopping from one league to another will help enhance his status. He hasn’t been at Dortmund for more than a month and he is already talking about playing for multiple clubs in his career.

We're already seeing it with Mbappe and Haalaand. Those are two players who are on pace of breaking Ronaldo's records. Mbappe already has a WC too. So the usual drivel his fans spit will be worthless because there will be players who are more successful or individually better, they wont be able to argue either way nor will they have ability to say either because they'll probably be more or less on the same level with less individual success/records.

 

[Aman]

[MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION] [MENTION=145946]Waleed93[/MENTION] [MENTION=145503]Mueez[/MENTION]

Are you going to jump on the Haaland/Mbappe bandwagon, become a hater or be indifferent as he's banging in goals for fun and erasing your boy from history?

 

[PetroDollars]

Check any poll, or vids where managers or experts are asked.

Only ones who think he's better are ex teammates or his delusional fan boys who even know it deep down. If the man looked like Rooney he would have 1 BdO.

Inspiration to #2s everywhere who have put him on a pedestal because they can't stand the idea that hard work cannot beat god given talent.

You dont need videos or polls, those are done by people who never watch football and sit on forums all day long

The real managers and experts are polled by FIFA every year, this is how Ballon'Dor works right, you cant twist or manipulate the facts because you dont like them, ex team mates did not make ronaldo win balon dor over messi for 5 years and fan boys like you arnt allowed to vote in them. So lie to yourself all you want it will only bring self satisfaction to you because facts dont change.

 

[Mueez]

[MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION] [MENTION=145946]Waleed93[/MENTION] [MENTION=145503]Mueez[/MENTION]

Are you going to jump on the Haaland/Mbappe bandwagon, become a hater or be indifferent as he's banging in goals for fun and erasing your boy from history?

I will have no shame admitting if Håaland or Mbappe become better than Cristiano Ronaldo, if they achieve more success than him in their respective career.

Also not any player who has been world class or has been touted to be the GOAT has been erased from the history, fyi.

As I said both Messi and Ronaldo are phenomenal players and we are blessed to witness them whilst playing.

But if I had to choose one, I’d choose Ronaldo.

 

[Mueez]

If you think Ronaldo is over rated you dont know anything about football and should just stop there.



Also the 'myth' of majority of the world considering Messi the best is just that a 'myth' created by his fan boys. The majority of the world voted 5 times for Ronaldo to be Ballon D'or while Messi was playing football. Hardly shows the world thinking Messi is better.

No point arguing with someone who isn’t ready to acknowledge a player’s success.

To say Ronaldo is overrated is a joke. Can’t take that seriously.

 

[Aman]

No point arguing with someone who isn’t ready to acknowledge a player’s success.

To say Ronaldo is overrated is a joke. Can’t take that seriously.

He certainly is when you call him the GOAT. I literally cringe when I hear that, so forced and laughable. He fails in so many areas to be in that discussion - he doesn't have the best game, he isn't the most successful, he hasn't won the most prizes, he doesn't have all the individual honors. So many areas missing.

He's not the GOAT, doesn't pass the eye test and his game is not GOAT caliber. Halaand and Mbappe will most likely end up with more accolades and records than him. I'm going to enjoy the meltdown from the die hards with each record they take.

 

[Mamoon]

Ronaldo is only overrated if you call him better than Messi.

In isolation, there are no question marks over his greatness. He is undoubtedly among the top 5 players of all time and one of biggest icons of the sport ever.

It takes a truly special player to give Messi a proper fight over such a long period and win 4 Ballon d’Ors during Messi’s peak.

4 because Messi was not in his peak when Ronaldo won his first Ballon d’Or in 2008.

 

[Aman]

Ronaldo is only overrated if you call him better than Messi.

In isolation, there are no question marks over his greatness. He is undoubtedly among the top 5 players of all time and one of biggest icons of the sport ever.

It takes a truly special player to give Messi a proper fight over such a long period and win 4 Ballon d’Ors during Messi’s peak.

4 because Messi was not in his peak when Ronaldo won his first Ballon d’Or in 2008.

That's the thing, Messi fans get offended when people put Ronaldo on the same level whereas Ronaldo fans either oversell/overrate him to be ahead of Messi or are happy for him to be on the same standing.

Ronaldos career does not touch Pele or Maradonas. Thats why no one other than his fans put him on that level. Unlike those two he doesn't pass the eye test either.

 

[Waleed93]

[MENTION=132954]Aman[/MENTION]

Have you ever seen Pele play ? No, you haven't.

I am sure you are aware about the fact that Pelé's football was completely different to Ronaldo or Messi's football. There were no offside rules, people still count the goals he scored against his neighbours as "official" goals. This is the only reason why he has managed to take his career tally to almost 1300 goals, which is ridiculous to say the least, as if you remove all those friendly and non-competitive games, his tally drops to 750, which is going to be overtaken by both Ronaldo and Messi.

Calling a man who has won 5 ballon d'ors, 4 golden boots, 5 UCL titles, a man who pretty much own every UCL record a forward can hold, with two titles with his national team, 720+ goals and 250 assists, overrated then it's nothing but pure hatred, to a point that it's not even funny. It basically shows how much pain you have had to go through during that 2014-2018 period where Ronaldo was winning tournament after tournament, was collecting awards after awards, whereas all Messi was doing was bottling lead after lead in the UCL, sending penalties on Mars in a Copa America Final, and watching Ronaldo catch up with him with 5 ballon d'ors.

You can use Maradona to downgrade Ronaldo as well. In fact, Maradona's Argentina career is probably superior to Ronaldo's Portugal career, even though the latter's achievements with his national side have been excellent, but the fact that Maradona played an iconic role to take his nation to a WC title gives him an advantage over Ronaldo. However, there is literally no comparison between the two when it comes to club football.

If you compare Messi's Argentina record with Maradona's, then there is simply no comparison, as Maradona towers above him. The fact that Argentina had won 14 Copa Americas and 2 WC titles before Messi's debut and a grand total of 0 international trophies after him should be enough to judge his impact on his national side.

Again, using names like Haaland or Mbappé is not going to cool down your frustration and hatred towards Ronaldo. In fact, in a few years time, you could argue that Mbappé will have a better international career than Messi, as he already has won the WC, and is a true contender to win the Euros this year.
Moreover, Haaland and Mbappé have both idolised Ronaldo, so your "the whole world thinks that Messi is better" myth can go to bed.

The day Haaland beats Ronaldo in terms of goalscoring, assisting, winning big games and not dissapearing like the "real GOAT" when it matters the most, and longevity, only then you will get the right to talk about it. Until then,

From Pelé, to Maradona, to Mbappé, to Haaland, frustration and hatred have no limits. )))
[MENTION=145503]Mueez[/MENTION] [MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION]

 

[Aman]

[MENTION=132954]Aman[/MENTION]

Have you ever seen Pele play ? No, you haven't.

I am sure you are aware about the fact that Pelé's football was completely different to Ronaldo or Messi's football. There were no offside rules, people still count the goals he scored against his neighbours as "official" goals. This is the only reason why he has managed to take his career tally to almost 1300 goals, which is ridiculous to say the least, as if you remove all those friendly and non-competitive games, his tally drops to 750, which is going to be overtaken by both Ronaldo and Messi.

Calling a man who has won 5 ballon d'ors, 4 golden boots, 5 UCL titles, a man who pretty much own every UCL record a forward can hold, with two titles with his national team, 720+ goals and 250 assists, overrated then it's nothing but pure hatred, to a point that it's not even funny. It basically shows how much pain you have had to go through during that 2014-2018 period where Ronaldo was winning tournament after tournament, was collecting awards after awards, whereas all Messi was doing was bottling lead after lead in the UCL, sending penalties on Mars in a Copa America Final, and watching Ronaldo catch up with him with 5 ballon d'ors.

You can use Maradona to downgrade Ronaldo as well. In fact, Maradona's Argentina career is probably superior to Ronaldo's Portugal career, even though the latter's achievements with his national side have been excellent, but the fact that Maradona played an iconic role to take his nation to a WC title gives him an advantage over Ronaldo. However, there is literally no comparison between the two when it comes to club football.

If you compare Messi's Argentina record with Maradona's, then there is simply no comparison, as Maradona towers above him. The fact that Argentina had won 14 Copa Americas and 2 WC titles before Messi's debut and a grand total of 0 international trophies after him should be enough to judge his impact on his national side.

Again, using names like Haaland or Mbappé is not going to cool down your frustration and hatred towards Ronaldo. In fact, in a few years time, you could argue that Mbappé will have a better international career than Messi, as he already has won the WC, and is a true contender to win the Euros this year.
Moreover, Haaland and Mbappé have both idolised Ronaldo, so your "the whole world thinks that Messi is better" myth can go to bed.

The day Haaland beats Ronaldo in terms of goalscoring, assisting, winning big games and not dissapearing like the "real GOAT" when it matters the most, and longevity, only then you will get the right to talk about it. Until then,

From Pelé, to Maradona, to Mbappé, to Haaland, frustration and hatred have no limits. )))
[MENTION=145503]Mueez[/MENTION] [MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION]

Like I said, Messi has zero to worry about from either. He's more than a goalscorer while those two are in the mould of Ronaldo except they're starting to score a lot younger.

Messi is the most complete player in the history of the game, it will be rare to see another like him. It's not easy to replicate that genius while Ronaldo's is pure stats based. Likewise his international career is overrated, his goals have come against teams nobody has heard of and he has never scored or assisted in a WC KO game. He's never won an international individual honor at a tournament. Mbappe's international career is already greater than Ronaldo's IMHO.

As for his 5 BdOs, he would have 1 or none if he looked like Rooney. His looks and brand play a big part in his BdO wins.

 

[Aman]

There's a reason why the smartest men in the game always pick Messi. It's just the braindead fan boys who are fooling themselves funny thing is deep down in their heart of hearts they're lying to themselves. 95/100 games Ronaldo does nothing in games other than wait in the box for a penalty or tap in, anything to get on the scoreboard and his idiotic fan boys to scream gOaT at the top of their lungs. What a joke )

 

[Aman]

Of course Haaland and Mbappe have idiolized him, their games are similar they're not artists or geniuses just stat stuffers.

None of them are GOAT caliber, they're at most top 10 players of all time. That's their ceiling, they'll never be in that discussion irrespective of what they win or how many goals they score. Not genuine GOAT discussion material like Messi, Pele and Maradona who had that 'it' factor and genius which stood them apart from the rest.

 

[Aman]

Ronaldo even now is in the outskirts of the top 5 in most discussions whereas the top spot is debated by the big 3.

 

[Waleed93]

Like I said, Messi has zero to worry about from either. He's more than a goalscorer while those two are in the mould of Ronaldo except they're starting to score a lot younger.

Messi is the most complete player in the history of the game, it will be rare to see another like him. It's not easy to replicate that genius while Ronaldo's is pure stats based. Likewise his international career is overrated, his goals have come against teams nobody has heard of and he has never scored or assisted in a WC KO game. He's never won an international individual honor at a tournament. Mbappe's international career is already greater than Ronaldo's IMHO.

As for his 5 BdOs, he would have 1 or none if he looked like Rooney. His looks and brand play a big part in his BdO wins.

Firstly, it's nice to see you ignoring 90% of what I wrote in my previous post.

Secondly, if you say that Mbappé's international career is already bigger than Ronaldo's, then he has to be miles ahead of Messi in that aspect as well, especially if you keep in mind what Messi has achieved with his national side compared to Maradona.

If you compare Ronaldo and Messi's international careers, you will realise that Messi has just about 35 competitive goals with Argentina whereas Ronaldo has 70+ goals scored in competitive games. Hypocrisy dies a thousand death when Messi fan boys hype him for repeatedly smashing teams like Eibar and Levante for 17 years, only to find himself exposed against the big boys in the UCL. They still have the balls to call out Ronaldo for scoring against small teams with Portugal.

Again, if you actually believe that his 5 Ballon d'Ors were not deserved and he won them because simply because of his looks and brand, you are just taking your hatred to an extreme level which is not going to take you far. If you want me to justify his 5 Ballon d'Or wins, then just ask it, because these petty excuses only expose your lack of knowledge and the level of hatred you have for a football player, which is stupid to be honest.

 

[Aman]

Firstly, it's nice to see you ignoring 90% of what I wrote in my previous post.

Secondly, if you say that Mbappé's international career is already bigger than Ronaldo's, then he has to be miles ahead of Messi in that aspect as well, especially if you keep in mind what Messi has achieved with his national side compared to Maradona.

If you compare Ronaldo and Messi's international careers, you will realise that Messi has just about 35 competitive goals with Argentina whereas Ronaldo has 70+ goals scored in competitive games. Hypocrisy dies a thousand death when Messi fan boys hype him for repeatedly smashing teams like Eibar and Levante for 17 years, only to find himself exposed against the big boys in the UCL. They still have the balls to call out Ronaldo for scoring against small teams with Portugal.

Again, if you actually believe that his 5 Ballon d'Ors were not deserved and he won them because simply because of his looks and brand, you are just taking your hatred to an extreme level which is not going to take you far. If you want me to justify his 5 Ballon d'Or wins, then just ask it, because these petty excuses only expose your lack of knowledge and the level of hatred you have for a football player, which is stupid to be honest.

Messi has won an international accolade at every tournament he has played in. Mbappe has yet to win an individual honor at an international event and was not the main man for France.

WC Olympic medal
U20 WC winner and golden ball winner
Copa America multiple Finalist and golden ball winner
WC Final and golden ball winner

Also, only a fraction of his goals have come against top 50 teams. Most of the time he is beating up on minnows and affiliates no one has heard of

 

[Aman]

The most damning thing is Portugal won a Euro Final without him AND he's never scored a goal or assisted in a WC KO. Never won an individual honor at any international event, or even gotten close to it.

For the Euros Portugal won Ronaldo didn't even manage to make the Euro XI IIRC.

But he's the GOAT, what a joke )

 

[Aman]

Imagine calling MJ the GOAT when he's never won a Finals MVP in his entire career, his team won a Finals without and or scored more than 20 points in a playoffs game.

 

[Waleed93]

Messi has won an international accolade at every tournament he has played in. Mbappe has yet to win an individual honor at an international event and was not the main man for France.

WC Olympic medal
U20 WC winner and golden ball winner
Copa America multiple Finalist and golden ball winner
WC Final and golden ball winner

Also, only a fraction of his goals have come against top 50 teams. Most of the time he is beating up on minnows and affiliates no one has heard of

You are just exposing your severe lack of knowledge when it comes to football. Mbappé won the best young player at the end of the WC, he was by far the most decisive man for France, became the first teenager to score in a WC final since Pelé. Heck, he even scored a brace to knock out Messi in the RO 16. ))

You can use Messi's U19 wins for Argentina to somehow make your narrative work, but unfortunately, those titles are not international titles he won for Argentina, so you should try something different to make his national record look better than Ronaldo's.

So just because Portugal won the final without him means that he didn't contribute to the victory ?

If only playing the final makes you worthy of winning a title, then kindly remind me Messi's contribution in the 2006 UCL. He not only missed the final, but also scored a grand total of 1 goal and had 0 assists throughout the competition. According to your logic, we should remove that UCL win from his record, or should we just leave it the way it is so that Messi fans can proudly say that he only has 1 less UCL trophy than Ronaldo, to somehow make him look comparable to CR7 ? Please try to explain this without running away, and, before you ask me about Ronaldo's contribution in the Euros, then let me inform you about the fact that he was the 2nd top scorer behind Griezmann, and the 2nd best assist provider behind Hazard.

Finally, let me teach you another fact that you probably were not aware of, giving the amount of knowledge you possess, but unfortunately for you, Ronaldo was included in the Euro XI.

PS: These last 2 paragraphs literally exposed your hatred and frustration and I am pretty sure you will not be able to justify yourself without changing the topic, just like you ran away after saying that Ronaldo won his 5 Ballon d'Ors because of his personality and brand. )))

 

[Aman]

You are just exposing your severe lack of knowledge when it comes to football. Mbappé won the best young player at the end of the WC, he was by far the most decisive man for France, became the first teenager to score in a WC final since Pelé. Heck, he even scored a brace to knock out Messi in the RO 16. ))

You can use Messi's U19 wins for Argentina to somehow make your narrative work, but unfortunately, those titles are not international titles he won for Argentina, so you should try something different to make his national record look better than Ronaldo's.

So just because Portugal won the final without him means that he didn't contribute to the victory ?

If only playing the final makes you worthy of winning a title, then kindly remind me Messi's contribution in the 2006 UCL. He not only missed the final, but also scored a grand total of 1 goal and had 0 assists throughout the competition. According to your logic, we should remove that UCL win from his record, or should we just leave it the way it is so that Messi fans can proudly say that he only has 1 less UCL trophy than Ronaldo, to somehow make him look comparable to CR7 ? Please try to explain this without running away, and, before you ask me about Ronaldo's contribution in the Euros, then let me inform you about the fact that he was the 2nd top scorer behind Griezmann, and the 2nd best assist provider behind Hazard.

Finally, let me teach you another fact that you probably were not aware of, giving the amount of knowledge you possess, but unfortunately for you, Ronaldo was included in the Euro XI.

PS: These last 2 paragraphs literally exposed your hatred and frustration and I am pretty sure you will not be able to justify yourself without changing the topic, just like you ran away after saying that Ronaldo won his 5 Ballon d'Ors because of his personality and brand. )))

Sorry is the best young player the Golden Ball?

Nope.

Try again, maybe he can cheerlead France from the sidelines and become GOAT )

 

[Aman]

Ultimate GOAT )

Who are you trying to fool? Yourself?

The other two GOAT candidates constantly talk about Messi and don't bother with Ronaldo because they know they're well ahead of him.

Ultimate GOAT

 

[Waleed93]

Sorry is the best young player the Golden Ball?

Nope.

Try again, maybe he can cheerlead France from the sidelines and become GOAT )

Come on, atleast have the balls to answer the questions I asked without running away. It's getting sad now to be honest. You are humiliating yourself after running away and dissapearing at every opportunity.

 

[Waleed93]

Ultimate GOAT )

Who are you trying to fool? Yourself?

The other two GOAT candidates constantly talk about Messi and don't bother with Ronaldo because they know they're well ahead of him.

Ultimate GOAT

Well, if you are talking about Pelé, the same Pelé said that "Messi has one talent and that is his left foot, Cristiano is the most complete player and the most complete forward".

If you are speaking about Maradona, should I remind you how many times he literally insulted Messi ?

PS: Back to the topic, I am still waiting for the answers I asked, POST 197.

 

[Aman]

Come on, atleast have the balls to answer the questions I asked without running away. It's getting sad now to be honest. You are humiliating yourself after running away and dissapearing at every opportunity.

I don't bother to read drivel from someone who has a tap in and penalty merchant as their GOAT. I laugh and move on.

Maybe if you're here in 10 years I can laugh again once Haaland and Mbappe have erased Ronaldo from history.

 

[Aman]

[MENTION=145946]Waleed93[/MENTION] would have stanned Muller and put him ahead of Maradona and Pele.

 

[Waleed93]

I don't bother to read drivel from someone who has a tap in and penalty merchant as their GOAT. I laugh and move on.

In other words, "I simply ignored what you said as I don't have the ability to answer without exposing myself and then running away".))

1. Haaland better than Ronaldo.
2. Portugal won the Euros with 0 contributions from Ronaldo.
3. Ronaldo won 5 Ballon d'Ors because he is handsome.

What next ?)

 

[Aman]

In other words, "I simply ignored what you said as I don't have the ability to answer without exposing myself and then running away".))

1. Haaland better than Ronaldo.
2. Portugal won the Euros with 0 contributions from Ronaldo.
3. Ronaldo won 5 Ballon d'Ors because he is handsome.

What next ?)

Ronaldo won 5 because of his brand, a lot of which is built on his image and looks. If he looked like Rooney, no way would he have 5.

Haaland is on pace to erase Ronaldo from history. Obviously early days but proflic goalscorers are more common than GOAT geniuses like Messi, Pele and Maradona. If not Haaland, there will be another.

 

[Aman]

Portugal won the Euro Final without Ronaldo. That's a fact. They actually played better without him.

 

[Waleed93]

Ronaldo won 5 because of his brand, a lot of which is built on his image and looks. If he looked like Rooney, no way would he have 5.

Haaland is on pace to erase Ronaldo from history. Obviously early days but proflic goalscorers are more common than GOAT geniuses like Messi, Pele and Maradona.

You keep digging your own grave, to a point where you know that even running away is not going to save you from humiliation.

"Ronaldo is handsome, this is why he won 5 Ballon d'Ors"))

Heck, David Beckham should have won 10 by now. Thankfully he is not playing in this era where a player wins awards because of his good looks. ))

This getting out of hand now.

 

[Waleed93]

Portugal won the Euro Final without Ronaldo. That's a fact. They actually played better without him.

Yeah ? Come on, tell me if we should remove UCL 2006 from Messi's record.

*RUNS AWAY*

 

[Aman]

You keep digging your own grave, to a point where you know that even running away is not going to save you from humiliation.

"Ronaldo is handsome, this is why he won 5 Ballon d'Ors"))

Heck, David Beckham should have won 10 by now. Thankfully he is not playing in this era where a player wins awards because of his good looks. ))

This getting out of hand now.

Ronaldo is obsessed with the BdO and has two of the most powerful men backing him and his legion of idiots who think he's the GOAT. He built a brand for himself with his superstar image that appeals to easily impressed Desi's like yourself which there is an abundance of. People who can see through it all rate him appropriately and aren't fooled by the tap ins, penalties and siuus

 

[Waleed93]

Ronaldo is obsessed with the BdO and has two of the most powerful men backing him and his legion of idiots who think he's the GOAT. He built a brand for himself with his superstar image that appeals to easily impressed Desi's like yourself which there is an abundance of. People who can see through it all rate him appropriately and aren't fooled by the tap ins, penalties and siuus

Answer the questions I asked on post 197. Why are you changing the topic ?

You know you are getting humiliated on an online forum here.)))

 

[Aman]

Answer the questions I asked on post 197. Why are you changing the topic ?

You know you are getting humiliated on an online forum here.)))

What question? All I see is a wall of nonsense that isn't worth going through and will only give me a headache reading through the delusion. Don't have the time to read a wall of text from an uLtIMaTe gOaT fan boy

 

[Waleed93]

What question? All I see is a wall of nonsense that isn't worth going through and will only give me a headache reading through the delusion. Don't have the time to read a wall of text from an uLtIMaTe gOaT fan boy

I am giving you another opportunity to justify yourself.

1. Ronaldo didn't play the 2016 final, so he didn't deserve the Euro win. According to that logic, does Messi deserve the 2006 UCL win, keeping in mind his contribution (0) during that tournament ?

2. Ronaldo has won 5 Ballon d'Ors. Let me teach you why :

2008 : UCL top scorer, Golden Shoe winner, UCL winner, EPL winner. Deserved.

2013 : 69 goals in a calendar year (the most), Golden Shoe winner. Deserved.

2014: UCL winner, UCL top scorer, Golden Shoe winner, 61 goals in a calendar year (the most). Deserved.

2016 : UCL winner, UCL top scorer, 50+ goals in a calendar year, Euro winner, Euro 2nd top scorer, Fifa The Best winner. Deserved.

2017 : UCL winner, UCL top scorer, 50+ goals in a calendar year, La Liga winner, Fifa The Best winner.

...But but, he won these because he is handsome ? )))))

These 2 questions are the most stupid excuses I have ever heard. Come on, justify your hatred, without exposing your lack of understanding.

 

[Mueez]

[MENTION=132954]Aman[/MENTION]

Have you ever seen Pele play ? No, you haven't.

I am sure you are aware about the fact that Pelé's football was completely different to Ronaldo or Messi's football. There were no offside rules, people still count the goals he scored against his neighbours as "official" goals. This is the only reason why he has managed to take his career tally to almost 1300 goals, which is ridiculous to say the least, as if you remove all those friendly and non-competitive games, his tally drops to 750, which is going to be overtaken by both Ronaldo and Messi.

Calling a man who has won 5 ballon d'ors, 4 golden boots, 5 UCL titles, a man who pretty much own every UCL record a forward can hold, with two titles with his national team, 720+ goals and 250 assists, overrated then it's nothing but pure hatred, to a point that it's not even funny. It basically shows how much pain you have had to go through during that 2014-2018 period where Ronaldo was winning tournament after tournament, was collecting awards after awards, whereas all Messi was doing was bottling lead after lead in the UCL, sending penalties on Mars in a Copa America Final, and watching Ronaldo catch up with him with 5 ballon d'ors.

You can use Maradona to downgrade Ronaldo as well. In fact, Maradona's Argentina career is probably superior to Ronaldo's Portugal career, even though the latter's achievements with his national side have been excellent, but the fact that Maradona played an iconic role to take his nation to a WC title gives him an advantage over Ronaldo. However, there is literally no comparison between the two when it comes to club football.

If you compare Messi's Argentina record with Maradona's, then there is simply no comparison, as Maradona towers above him. The fact that Argentina had won 14 Copa Americas and 2 WC titles before Messi's debut and a grand total of 0 international trophies after him should be enough to judge his impact on his national side.

Again, using names like Haaland or Mbappé is not going to cool down your frustration and hatred towards Ronaldo. In fact, in a few years time, you could argue that Mbappé will have a better international career than Messi, as he already has won the WC, and is a true contender to win the Euros this year.
Moreover, Haaland and Mbappé have both idolised Ronaldo, so your "the whole world thinks that Messi is better" myth can go to bed.

The day Haaland beats Ronaldo in terms of goalscoring, assisting, winning big games and not dissapearing like the "real GOAT" when it matters the most, and longevity, only then you will get the right to talk about it. Until then,

From Pelé, to Maradona, to Mbappé, to Haaland, frustration and hatred have no limits. )))
[MENTION=145503]Mueez[/MENTION] [MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION]

Well said bro.

In my opinion, a GOAT is one who has brought joy to his club AND country.

No doubt Messi is a great great player but I don’t think he is the GOAT because he hasn’t lead Argentina to a trophy.

His ideal chance to win a WC was in 2014, however he bottled it...

The less said about Copa America, the better it is.

 

[Mueez]

I am giving you another opportunity to justify yourself.

1. Ronaldo didn't play the 2016 final, so he didn't deserve the Euro win. According to that logic, does Messi deserve the 2006 UCL win, keeping in mind his contribution (0) during that tournament ?

2. Ronaldo has won 5 Ballon d'Ors. Let me teach you why :

2008 : UCL top scorer, Golden Shoe winner, UCL winner, EPL winner. Deserved.

2013 : 69 goals in a calendar year (the most), Golden Shoe winner. Deserved.

2014: UCL winner, UCL top scorer, Golden Shoe winner, 61 goals in a calendar year (the most). Deserved.

2016 : UCL winner, UCL top scorer, 50+ goals in a calendar year, Euro winner, Euro 2nd top scorer, Fifa The Best winner. Deserved.

2017 : UCL winner, UCL top scorer, 50+ goals in a calendar year, La Liga winner, Fifa The Best winner.

...But but, he won these because he is handsome ? )))))

These 2 questions are the most stupid excuses I have ever heard. Come on, justify your hatred, without exposing your lack of understanding.

Great response.

 

[Waleed93]

Well said bro.

In my opinion, a GOAT is one who has brought joy to his club AND country.

No doubt Messi is a great great player but I don’t think he is the GOAT because he hasn’t lead Argentina to a trophy.

His ideal chance to win a WC was in 2014, however he bottled it...

The less said about Copa America, the better it is.

The funniest thing about some Messi fans is the fact that they have the audacity to downgrade Ronaldo by calling his Euro win undeserved. However, they are the first one to glorify Messi's 2014 WC campaign, in which he scored 4 goals (as many as Ronaldo did in the 2018 WC), all of them coming against Nigeria and Iran in the group stages.

As always, he dissapeared in the knockout stages, had a grand total of 1 assist in the tournament and some people go gaga over his WC golden ball.

Ronaldo's Euro campaign : 3 goals and 3 assists. 2nd top scorer, 2nd best assist provider, contributed in 6 out of 9 Portuguese goals. Match winning performance in the semi-final.

Messi's 2014 WC campaign : 4 goals, 1 assist, 3rd top scorer, 0 goals and 1 assist in the KO round.

Ronaldo's Euro campaign is called a poor one, and Messi's 2014 performance is called a great one.

 

[Mueez]

The funniest thing about some Messi fans is the fact that they have the audacity to downgrade Ronaldo by calling his Euro win undeserved. However, they are the first one to glorify Messi's 2014 WC campaign, in which he scored 4 goals (as many as Ronaldo did in the 2018 WC), all of them coming against Nigeria and Iran in the group stages.

As always, he dissapeared in the knockout stages, had a grand total of 1 assist in the tournament and some people go gaga over his WC golden ball.

Ronaldo's Euro campaign : 3 goals and 3 assists. 2nd top scorer, 2nd best assist provider, contributed in 6 out of 9 Portuguese goals. Match winning performance in the semi-final.

Messi's 2014 WC campaign : 4 goals, 1 assist, 3rd top scorer, 0 goals and 1 assist in the KO round.

Ronaldo's Euro campaign is called a poor one, and Messi's 2014 performance is called a great one.

Come the KO stages and one disappears. I wonder why?

 

[Mamoon]

In spite of Ronaldo’s “superior” performance in Euro 2016 compared to Messi’s “inferior” World Cup 2014 performance, Ronaldo did not win the player of the tournament award in spite of winning the tournament.

On the contrary, Messi won the World Cup Golden Ball in spite of going “missing” in knockouts.

Ronaldo fans can cry all they want, but he will never have the honor of winning the coveted World Cup Golden Ball.

In addition, Messi has also won the Copa America Golden Ball in 2015.

However, Ronaldo has won the most prestigious prize in football which is awarded by Man United and Real Madrid fans:

“The Better Than Messi” Ball.

 

[Waleed93]

In spite of Ronaldo’s “superior” performance in Euro 2016 compared to Messi’s “inferior” World Cup 2014 performance, Ronaldo did not win the player of the tournament award in spite of winning the tournament.

On the contrary, Messi won the World Cup Golden Ball in spite of going “missing” in knockouts.

Ronaldo fans can cry all they want, but he will never have the honor of winning the coveted World Cup Golden Ball.

In addition, Messi has also won the Copa America Golden Ball in 2015.

However, Ronaldo has won the most prestigious prize in football which is awarded by Man United and Real Madrid fans:

“The Better Than Messi” Ball.

You can cry as much as you want.

Deep inside you know that the WC golden ball he won was nothing special, and I already gave you the reasons as well, but you decided to run away only to come back today as if nothing happened.

Ronaldo doesn't care about winning the Euro Golden Ball if he manages to win the Euro Cup, being the 2nd best player in the tournament.

However, I am sure even you think that he won it because of his "looks and brand" just like his 5 Ballon d'Ors. ))

 

[Waleed93]

Come the KO stages and one �� disappears. I wonder why?

There is a reason why Ronaldo has 41 goals in UCL quarter/semi and finals and Messi only has 16.

He is a proven big game player who, more often than not steps up when his team needs him, while Messi, for all his God gifted talent, becomes invisible when things get tough.

 

[Mamoon]

You can cry as much as you want.

Deep inside you know that the WC golden ball he won was nothing special, and I already gave you the reasons as well, but you decided to run away only to come back today as if nothing happened.

Ronaldo doesn't care about winning the Euro Golden Ball if he manages to win the Euro Cup, being the 2nd best player in the tournament.

However, I am sure even you think that he won it because of his "looks and brand" just like his 5 Ballon d'Ors. ))

I am not the one crying. You are the one who is crying because you are discrediting Messi’s Golden Ball.

It is utterly ridiculous to say that his Golden Ball was nothing special. He single-handedly dragged Argentina to the knockouts.

In the R16, he produced a MoM performance against Switzerland and assisted Di Maria’s goal.

In the QF, he was the best attacking player on the pitch ahead of Hazard and Di Maria.

In the SF, the defenders dominated the game particularly Mascherano, but Messi was once again the only player on the pitch who looked like creating something.

In the Final, Messi outshone Özil and Muller and was the only threatening attacker from Argentina. Di Maria was injured and Higuain and Lavezzi were pathetic.

Thus, it is ludicrous to claim that Messi did not deserve the Golden Ball. As a Ronaldo fan it might be difficult to comprehend, but the Golden Ball is an impact award, not a statistical award.

The highest goal scorer is not necessarily the best player, and if Ronaldo fans understood that, they would never argue that Ronaldo is better than Messi, since in terms of overall play, Messi is far ahead. Funnily enough, he is actually a better goal scorer as well.

Messi was by far the most high impact player at the World Cup because Argentina had absolutely no chance of qualifying for the final without him.

None of the German players deserved to win if ahead of him because Germany was a well-oiled machine. You could replace Muller, Bastian or Hummels etc. with comparable players and they would still win the World Cup.

Özil was one of the weakest players of the World Cup but even his poor performances are hidden because of Germany’s overall dominance.

James Rodriguez had very little impact on the results outside the R16. Had he steered Colombia past Brazil he would have had a legitimate claim at the Golden Ball.

Argentina were a bunch of dysfunctional jokers apart from Messi. Take Messi out of that team and they would probably falter at the group stage, since it was his individual brilliance that dragged them against Iran, Bosnia and Nigeria.

You can laugh at Messi for scoring against weak teams (while celebrating Ronaldo’s international goals against Luxembourg, Latvia and Andorra), but these weak teams were dominating Argentina before Messi saved his team over and over again.

Apart from Messi, no attacker would have functioned in that imbalanced, dysfunctional Argentinian team, and that is why Messi rightfully won the Golden Ball ahead of Muller, James, Hummels, Neuer, Robben, Van Persie etc.

Finally, I “ran away” because I had nothing to add to the discussion as I stated in my previous post. It appears that you take this as some sort of a competition. If so, be happy because I will be “running away” again.

I don’t think Ronaldo won the Ballon d’Ors because of his brand. You should read my previous reply to Aman.

I think Ronaldo is an incredible player and undoubtedly among the top 5 players of all time. If Messi didn’t exist, he would have rightfully won 9-10 Ballon d’Ors. It is his sheer bad luck that he played in the same era as the GOAT.

However, anyone who thinks he is a better player than Messi either doesn’t understand football or is dishonest, as Van Basten rightly stated the other day.

Messi’s superiority over Ronaldo cannot be questioned.

As far as not winning the Euro best player award, don’t pretend that Ronaldo doesn’t care about individual accords. He lives for individual awards and cares about them more than Messi.

He is obsessed with having more Ballon d’Ors than Messi throws a tantrum every time Messi pips him. Unfortunately for him, he will always be behind Messi in terms of Ballon d’Ors and will never win a World Cup Golden Ball.

 

[AdamM97]

Messi is better overall although Ronaldo isn’t far behind.

Ronaldo may be more hard-working but Messi is simply more talented and skillful.

 

[PetroDollars]

Messi fan boys have lost it,

Ronaldo is over rated, Haaland and Mbappe already better then Ronaldo, Ronldo won 5 Balon d'ors because hes handsome, )

Is that all Messi fans have about Ronaldo

Surly Messi will go down as a great with the worse fan base in history.

 

[DeadBall]

Ronaldo is only overrated if you call him better than Messi.

In isolation, there are no question marks over his greatness. He is undoubtedly among the top 5 players of all time and one of biggest icons of the sport ever.

It takes a truly special player to give Messi a proper fight over such a long period and win 4 Ballon d’Ors during Messi’s peak.

4 because Messi was not in his peak when Ronaldo won his first Ballon d’Or in 2008.

/thread

There hasn't been a more complete player than Messi. Ever.

Blessed in all facets. He is to football what Hafeez is to Pakistan cricket.

 

[DeadBall]

Messi fan boys have lost it,

Ronaldo is over rated, Haaland and Mbappe already better then Ronaldo, Ronldo won 5 Balon d'ors because hes handsome, )

Is that all Messi fans have about Ronaldo

Surly Messi will go down as a great with the worse fan base in history.

True but same can be said about Ronaldo fans. I just saw Haaland's goals for the 2019-20 and 90% of them were created by Minamino's and Hwang's brilliance and he mostly just tapped it in. It is an insult to Ronaldo to be compared with him.

However Messi is the GOAT and the rest of the ATGs can wrassle for the other spots.

 

[Ashraful_Rox]

Ronaldo for me, he has the height and body of a Greek God

 

[Waleed93]

I am not the one crying. You are the one who is crying because you are discrediting Messi’s Golden Ball.

It is utterly ridiculous to say that his Golden Ball was nothing special. He single-handedly dragged Argentina to the knockouts.

In the R16, he produced a MoM performance against Switzerland and assisted Di Maria’s goal.

In the QF, he was the best attacking player on the pitch ahead of Hazard and Di Maria.

In the SF, the defenders dominated the game particularly Mascherano, but Messi was once again the only player on the pitch who looked like creating something.

In the Final, Messi outshone Özil and Muller and was the only threatening attacker from Argentina. Di Maria was injured and Higuain and Lavezzi were pathetic.

Thus, it is ludicrous to claim that Messi did not deserve the Golden Ball. As a Ronaldo fan it might be difficult to comprehend, but the Golden Ball is an impact award, not a statistical award.

The highest goal scorer is not necessarily the best player, and if Ronaldo fans understood that, they would never argue that Ronaldo is better than Messi, since in terms of overall play, Messi is far ahead. Funnily enough, he is actually a better goal scorer as well.

Messi was by far the most high impact player at the World Cup because Argentina had absolutely no chance of qualifying for the final without him.

None of the German players deserved to win if ahead of him because Germany was a well-oiled machine. You could replace Muller, Bastian or Hummels etc. with comparable players and they would still win the World Cup.

Özil was one of the weakest players of the World Cup but even his poor performances are hidden because of Germany’s overall dominance.

James Rodriguez had very little impact on the results outside the R16. Had he steered Colombia past Brazil he would have had a legitimate claim at the Golden Ball.

Argentina were a bunch of dysfunctional jokers apart from Messi. Take Messi out of that team and they would probably falter at the group stage, since it was his individual brilliance that dragged them against Iran, Bosnia and Nigeria.

You can laugh at Messi for scoring against weak teams (while celebrating Ronaldo’s international goals against Luxembourg, Latvia and Andorra), but these weak teams were dominating Argentina before Messi saved his team over and over again.

Apart from Messi, no attacker would have functioned in that imbalanced, dysfunctional Argentinian team, and that is why Messi rightfully won the Golden Ball ahead of Muller, James, Hummels, Neuer, Robben, Van Persie etc.

Finally, I “ran away” because I had nothing to add to the discussion as I stated in my previous post. It appears that you take this as some sort of a competition. If so, be happy because I will be “running away” again.

I don’t think Ronaldo won the Ballon d’Ors because of his brand. You should read my previous reply to Aman.

I think Ronaldo is an incredible player and undoubtedly among the top 5 players of all time. If Messi didn’t exist, he would have rightfully won 9-10 Ballon d’Ors. It is his sheer bad luck that he played in the same era as the GOAT.

However, anyone who thinks he is a better player than Messi either doesn’t understand football or is dishonest, as Van Basten rightly stated the other day.

Messi’s superiority over Ronaldo cannot be questioned.

As far as not winning the Euro best player award, don’t pretend that Ronaldo doesn’t care about individual accords. He lives for individual awards and cares about them more than Messi.

He is obsessed with having more Ballon d’Ors than Messi throws a tantrum every time Messi pips him. Unfortunately for him, he will always be behind Messi in terms of Ballon d’Ors and will never win a World Cup Golden Ball.

Again, you can try your level best to somehow make Messi's WC 2014 campaign look as some sort of legendary performances. Irony dies a thousand deaths when Messi fan boys cry over Ronaldo's impact in Euro 2016, while their own "real GOAT" only contributed when the opponents were Nigeria, Iran and Bosnia, and that too, in the group stages.

That is the whole problem with Messi fans. If the latter doesn't score or assist in a big game, which happens quite often to be honest, they will start crying about him creating 1254 chances, having 2569 dribbles, even if at the end of the day, he ended up having no impact on the final score, which leads his team to be knocked out.

During the 2014 WC, the likes of Muller and James had way more impact on their team's results and their performances were there for everyone to see with their names ending up on the final scorecard more often than not. This rarely happens with Messi. Even if he is without any doubt the most talented footballer to have played the game, his performances tend to be impact-less when the situation becomes tough, and we have been seeing this way more often recently, be it with Barcelona or Argentina.

On the other hand, Ronaldo who is not as talented as Messi, still ends up having more impact on the final result in these important games, and that is show, by the fact that he has 42 goals in UCL quarter-finals, semi-finals, and finals, compared to Messi's 16.

You can choose Messi over him anytime, but to say that those who prefer him don't understand football is pure hatred and nothing else. You just try to make it sound like we are comparing Messi to Neymar here.

I never said that he doesn't care about winning individual trophies. He himself has said multiple times that he wants to win as many awards as he can before retiring, and there is absolutely no shame in it. What I was saying is that he will happily choose another Euro Cup win later this year instead of winning the Euro Golden Ball and losing the final.

To say that he will always remain behind Messi in terms of Ballon d'Ors just because he has one Ballon d'Or less than him is funny, keeping in mind the fact that you are talking about a player who once had 3 less Ballon d'Ors than Messi (who had a 4-1 lead back in 2012), but somehow managed to make it 5-5, and would have won his 6th one before him had he decided to stay at Madrid back in 2018. This is how close it has been over the last 13 years, but yes, if you call Ronaldo better than Messi, you don't understand football.)))

 

[MenInG]

With coronavirus bringing sports and life in general to a halt in the entire world, football stars have started answering difficult questions: Who is the best in the world – Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo?

After David Beckham and Wayne Rooney minced no words in picking their side, Brazilian legends Ronaldinho, Ronaldo as well as Pele joined the debate which has left many arguing who is a more complete player.

Messi and Ronaldo have dominated European football for over a decade now and have won 11 of the last 12 Ballon d’Or awards between them. The Barcelona skipper clinched the Golden Ball for a record sixth time in December.

Ronaldinho, who was recently in a Paraguay jail over a case of fake passport, picked his former teammate Messi and regretted not getting more time to play with him. The 40-year-old Ballon d’Or winner was quoted by sportbible as saying: “Messi. I would have loved to continue playing alongside him. I didn’t get enough time with him, he was very young. I’d love to take to the pitch with him one more time.”

“He’s the best in history, no doubt. Nobody has done what Messi’s done. The other one [Ronaldo] is complete, he has it all. So does Messi, but it’s a question of taste and I prefer Messi’s style,” added Ronaldinho.

Ronaldo also reflected a similar opinion. “He [Messi] is out of this world. Cristiano, too, but I see Leo as more complete,” the 43-year-old said. “He’s great. I like him much more than any other player. Everything he does is spectacular.”

Calling the Argentinian a skilled player, 79-year-old Pele told SportStar, “He [Messi] is a skilled player, gives assists, passes, scores, dribbles well. If we were in the team together, the opponents should worry about two players, not just one! Today, Messi is the most complete player.”

Pele, however, felt that this was not a golden era for football. “Once, you found two or three in every country with a great football culture,” Pelé continued. “Eusébio, [António] Simões, [Johan] Cruyff, [Franz] Beckenbauer, [Diego] Maradona, Garrincha, Didi. How many did I say? There were so many. Today, we have two or three in all. ​Messi, ​Cristiano Ronaldo, I would say ​Neymar *- who in Brazil has not yet managed to become a great figure.”

https://indianexpress.com/article/s...s-pele-ronaldinho-and-ronaldo-answer-6378475/

 

[MenInG]

Lionel Messi scored the 700th goal of his career with a Panenka penalty in Barcelona's La Liga draw with Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.

The Spanish giants' all-time top scorer hit the landmark goal for club and country by gently chipping the ball into the net as Jan Oblak dived the wrong way.

The goal had put Barcelona 2-1 up but Atletico hit back to draw 2-2.

Barca remain second, one point behind Real Madrid, who have a game in hand.

Messi's penalty was also his 630th goal in his 724th appearance for the club.

The Argentina star played a part in the opener for Barcelona when his whipped corner hit Diego Costa and deflected into the back of the net.

Former Chelsea striker Costa quickly had the chance to make amends when Atletico were awarded a penalty after Yannick Carrasco was fouled inside the box.

Costa stepped up to take the spot kick only to see it saved by Marc-Andre ter Stegen, but it had to be retaken because the Barcelona goalkeeper had come off his line early. Saul Niguez took the second penalty and sent Ter Stegen the wrong way.

Messi restored Barcelona's lead and reached his career milestone with his cheeky Panenka - named after Antonin Panenka's famous penalty for Czechoslovakia in the final of the 1976 European Championship - but Niguez equalised again with another penalty as Barca dropped points which could cost them dear in the title race.

Messi joins 700 club
Another year, another milestone for Messi.

His 700th career goal - coming just over 14 months after netting for the 600th time for Barcelona - means he joins a select group.

According to data from Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation, Messi is now one of seven players to have reached the 700-goal mark in their career.

Czech-Austrian Josef Bican leads the way with 805 career goals, followed by Brazil legend Romario, who bagged 772, with his compatriot Pele third on 767.

Hungary legend Ferenc Puskas hit 746 goals, while former Germany striker Gerd Muller rounds out the top five with 735 goals.

Gerd Muller, Ferenc Puskas, Pepe, Romario, Josef Bican
Gerd Muller, Ferenc Puskas, Pele, Romario, Josef Bican - the top five goalscorers in history
Messi's great modern goalscoring rival, Cristiano Ronaldo, is the sixth man on the list, having reached 700 career goals with a strike for Portugal in a Euro 2020 qualifier against Ukraine in October last year. He has added a further 26 goals to his tally since then.

Players with 700+ career goals
Player Nationality Major clubs Goals Years scored between
Josef Bican Czech-Austrian Rapid Vienna, Slavia Prague 805 1931-1955
Romario Brazilian Vasco da Gama, PSV, Barcelona, 772 1985-2007
Pele Brazilian Santos, New York Cosmos 767 1957-1977
Ferenc Puskas Hungarian Budapest Honved, Real Madrid 746 1943-1966
Gerd Muller German Bayern Munich 735 1962-1981
Cristiano Ronaldo Portuguese Sporting CP, Man Utd, Real Madrid, Juventus 726 2002-present
Lionel Messi Argentine Barcelona 700 2005-present

A model of consistency, Messi has scored more than 40 goals for club and country in each of the past 11 calendar years and more than 50 in nine of the past 10. So far in 2020, after a three-month disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, he has 11 to his name.


Of the 40 La Liga opponents Messi has faced during his career, he has only failed to score against three of them - Xerez, Real Murcia and Cadiz.

How has he scored his 700 goals?
The majority of his goals have come from his left foot - 582 of them - with 92 coming courtesy of his right.

Not the biggest of players, nor one who has operated in a side reliant on crosses into the box, only 24 of his 700 goals have come from a header.

Clinical from a dead ball, Messi has also scored 52 direct free-kicks and 90 penalties.

Most come from efforts inside the box (580), with 120 from outside the penalty area.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/53226468

 

[MenInG]

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu says he has "no doubt" Argentina forward Lionel Messi will sign a new contract with the club.

The 33-year-old's current deal expires in 2021.

BBC Sport columnist Guillem Balague recently reported Messi was "fed up" at the Spanish club.

"Messi has said many times that he wants to retire here and I have no doubt that he will re-sign," Bartomeu told Mundo Deportivo.

Barcelona finished the domestic season five points behind La Liga champions Real Madrid.

They play the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Napoli on 8 August with the score 1-1 from the first match in February.

Messi, who won the La Liga Golden Boot with 25 goals, has said "things have to change" at the club.

On the transfer front, Bartomeu added: "Now we are making decisions and the players, if they do not come as part of a player exchange, it is very difficult for them to come."

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/53547114

 

[KingKhanWC]

Is it over for Messi and Ronaldo are finished?

Both ATG's are now struggling on the field.

Ronaldo was poor against Porto couldn't do anything to help them overcome the least favourite team in the CL, Porto. He wasnt running much, just shouting at his team mates to improve.

Messi missed a penalty against PSG. If he had scored it would have been 1-2 at half time, giving them a chance in the second half. Messi was never a big runner on the pitch but has become even more laid back.

Both will continue to play until the World Cup next year but are they done now? Or will they continue to be the 2 Greats of football until after the World Cup.

 

[PetroDollars]

All players go down one day, however Ronaldo is still a top player for a 36 year old, Messi meanwhile is only 33 and should be doing better.

 

[Slog]

Messi had a great game today.

He was head and shoulders above any other Barcelona player.

He could have missed this penalty at the peak of his powers

 

[pillionrider]

Both are still far superior to Salah

 

[Mamoon]

Messi is still brilliant. Over the last 2-3 months, he has been at his absolute best but had a slow start to the season because he was distracted by the transfer talk.

He outplayed every player on the pitch yesterday including Mbappe. As far as the penalty is concerned, he has never been a reliable penalty-taker.

Ronaldo has 20 goals in 22 matches in Serie A. He had a really bad game against Porto but he is still one of the top 3-4 players in the world.

He hasn’t been able to take Juventus deep into the UCL knockouts so far but it has more to do with his teammates than himself.

Nevertheless, the sun sets on everyone and at the end of the day, he is 36. His time in Europe is coming to an end and we could see him move to MLS in a year or so.

 

[Waleed93]

Messi at 33 is the top scorer in La Liga. Ronaldo at 36 is the top scorer in Serie A.
They both are still amongst the 3 best players in the world and their league performances speak for themselves.

Their numbers have taken a hit in the Champions League, Ronaldo was scoring 15 goals per season 2-3 years ago, Messi was hitting the 10-12 mark regularly as well, but this dip is more related to their teammates not stepping up, and over-relying on them when they are way past their best is a testament of them being too good compared to the rest.

Ronaldo can't carry Juventus to UCL title if his midfield is run by the likes of Rabiot, Bernadeschi and Betancur. It's a mediocre midfield, uncomparable to the creative duo of Modric and Kroos he had at Real Madrid. Yet, he has been carrying them in Serie A this season, scoring 20 goals so far, just behind a peak Lewandowski across Europe. The problem is that Juve's board expects him to do the same at the biggest stage of world football.

Similarly, Messi has been carrying Barca for way too long now and he even had a dip in goalscoring form for a few months. However, his recent form has been excellent and he has almost single handedly made Barca a La Liga contender, when they were fighting for a top 4 finish a few months ago. He was the best player yesterday night, Navas was a bit better though. That being said, I believe he will stay at Barca for now, especially as the future looks promising with the likes of De Jong, Pedri, Fati, Araujo, Puig, a consistent Dembele and a new competent board.

Haaland and Mbappé are certainly the future of the football world, but they will never be as good as the 2 GOATs.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Both are Legends and will of course continue to show moments of brilliance, as they did last night.

Both play in weaker leagues, they wouldnt have those numbers in the Premier League.

They however are not the same players as they once were, the decline is real and at a pace now.

 

[Firebat]

Will always be Messi for me. But when you have 2 players that have ruled the sport for over a decade, in direct rivalry, it is always going to be a fierce and subjective topic.

Regardless of who's better, one should appreciate how astonishing it is to be able to witness the 2 greatest players in history battling it out in their prime. The football they've produced has been unthinkable.

 

[OMB]

Is today going to be the day when Messi finally obtains that elusive international medal and make gains in the poll?

Argentina would be praying too that they get to win before Messi calls it a day

 

[Ab Fan]

Messi all the way.

 

[Mamoon]

There was never a debate.

Messi is the GOAT. No one comes close.

Absolutely dominated the tournament. He would have won 4-5 trophies for Argentina if Higuain was not the biggest bottler of this generation.

7th Ballon d’Or loading…

 

[Rajdeep]

Messi is much better. Actually, I rate Brazilian Ronaldo De Lima a better player than Christiano Ronaldo.

 

[Waleed93]

Many congratulations to Messi for finally getting his hands to the missing trophy. You could tell how happy he was after lifting the trophy, he must be a relieved man now.

That being said, the GOAT debate between Messi and Ronaldo will remain forever, even if Messi wins his 7th Ballon d'Or. The debate didn't stop when Messi scored 91 goals in 2012, when Ronaldo kept dominating the UCL between 2012-2018, when he won the Euros in 2016, when he equalled Messi's 5 Ballon d'Ors after once trailing 4-1, and it didn't stop even when Messi won his 6th one.

They are both the greatest players of all time, and you could choose anyone of these 2, or even Pelé or Maradona as your GOAT. Any other choice is wrong though.

 

[The_KING]

Messi at his best was getting 50-60 goals a season and so was Ronaldo. The difference is that Messi was getting extra 20 assists. I am not one for judging a player by stats anyway. Stats are for those people who either don't understand the game or don't watch it. Stats can never measure Messi's intelligence, stats can never measure Messi's passing range, stats can never measure the weight of Messi's passes. Stats can never justify Messi's brilliance. Having watched Ronaldo play since 2003 and Messi since 2005, I have to say that Messi is head and shoulders above Ronaldo as a player.

I have been watching football closely for 20 years and in that time, my top 5 players in terms of pure talent and ability are:

1) Messi
2) Ronaldinho
3) Brazilian Ronaldo
4) Neymar
5) Cristiano Ronaldo

 

[Firebat]

Cristiano Ronaldo criticises France Football editor over Lionel Messi Ballon d'Or claims

Cristiano Ronaldo has hit back at the editor of France Football who claimed the Manchester United forward’s only ambition is to “retire with more Ballons d’Or than Lionel Messi”.

The Portuguese, who has won the prestigious accolade five times, took to social media on Monday to refute the claims made by Pascal Ferré, who spoke to the New York Times ahead of the 2021 awards.

Ferré told the New York Times: "Ronaldo has only one ambition and that is to retire with more Ballon d'Or [awards] than Messi. I know because he has told me."

However, Ronaldo has disputed that version of events and took to Instagram to claim that Ferré "lied" during the interview.

"Today's outcome explains the comments by Pascal Ferré last week, when he stated that I confided in him that my only ambition was to finish my career with more Ballons d'Or than Lionel Messi," a Ronaldo statement said.

"Pascal Ferré lied and used my name to promote himself and to promote the publication that he works for. It's unacceptable for the person responsible for handing out such a prestigious award to lie in this way and to show disrespect to someone who has always respected France Football and the Ballon d'Or. He lied again today to justify my absence from the ceremony due to an alleged quarantine that has no reason to exist.

"I always congratulate whoever wins, in tandem with the sportsmanship and fair play that have underpinned my career since the start and I do that because I'm never against anyone. I always win for myself and for the clubs that I represent. I win for myself and for those who love me. I don't win against anyone."

Ronaldo added: "My biggest ambition in my career is to win trophies at club and international level, for the clubs that I play for and my national team. My biggest ambition in my career is to set a good example for everyone who is or wants to be a professional footballer. My biggest ambition in my career is to have my name written in gold in world football history.

"I'll finish up by saying that my focus is already on Manchester United's next game and everything that we can still achieve this season alongside my teammates and our fans. As for the rest, the rest is just that…"

https://www.skysports.com/football/...-france-football-over-messi-ballon-dor-claims

 

[Mamoon]

The greatest of all time and the father of Ronaldo.

How many Ballon d’Ors does Messi have?

 

[street cricketer]

The greatest of all time and the father of Ronaldo.

How many Ballon d’Ors does Messi have?

View attachment 113371

Lmao this is great)

 

[Waleed93]

The greatest of all time and the father of Ronaldo.

How many Ballon d’Ors does Messi have?

View attachment 113371

That is just poor and disrespectful towards a player who himself has won 5 Ballon d'Ors.

As an apparent mature football follower, I expected better from you.

 

[Saj]

Cristiano Ronaldo is the only player to ever score 800 goals in high-level football.

129 - Man Utd
5 - Sporting Lisbon
450 - Real Madrid
101 - Juventus
115 - Portugal

 

[Technics 1210]

Messi will score 25+ with L1. This was the prediction.

LOL.

 

[James]

He was majestically impactful in that second half last night, it cannot be denied. A big match player for the pressure cooker situations.

 

[MenInG]

What a goal this one!

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[MenInG]

Lionel Messi might not be scoring as many goals as he was for the most part of his career but his ability on the ball still remains unparalleled. In a match between Argentina and Honduras, Messi scored an outrageous goal that left fans on social media stunned.

Even at the age of 35, Messi continues to do things that remain unthinkable for players in the prime of their careers. Messi brilliantly pounced on an error in the Honduras midfield. It was Lautaro Martinez who won the possession and passed the ball to his strike-partner.


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[Saj]

Cristiano Ronaldo reached another landmark in his illustrious career by scoring his 700th club goal to give Manchester United the lead at Everton.

The goal took the Portugal forward's tally to 144 for United in his two spells at the club.

He scored five for Sporting Lisbon, 450 for Real Madrid and 101 for Juventus.

It is only the second goal of the season for Ronaldo, whose 699th goal came in the Europa League against FC Sheriff.

Ronaldo started the game on the bench but came on for the injured Anthony Martial in the 29th minute and scored 15 minutes later to put United 2-1 up.