Whenever Real Madrid takes on Barcelona, it is more often than not the most viewed match of the football calendar. While the rivalry between these two teams is older than a century, the recent spike in interest comes from the equally tensed rivalry between the game’s greatest players – Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Ronaldo and Messi are without a doubt the game’s greatest players, having shared the title of world’s best player five times each. Ronaldo was signed from Manchester United in the summer of 2009 for a then-record fee of £90 million. He scored 451 goals in the famous white shirt of Real Madrid, becoming the team’s all-time top scorer.
Messi was signed from Argentina at a young age and was immediately introduced into Barcelona’s famed La Masia Academy. He would go on to make his Barca debut at just 16 and become the club’s highest goal scorer and assist maker.
As you’ll see in the Betting-sites’ infographic below, both players have clashed a total of 35 times, with Messi edging it in the victory department by 16 wins to 10. Their rivalry peaked around the 2012/2013 season, with Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola in charge of Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively. El Clasicos became a hotly contested affair, with Ronaldo and Messi at the center of the action, both trying to outdo each other.
There is a stark contrast in their style of play. Messi is much more measured and laid-back with the way he plays, opting for cool placed finishes and finesse in front of goal.
Ronaldo, on the other hand, often opts for power over skill. The Portuguese is right-footed, and his speed and strength are his biggest weapons on the field. He relies on the speed to take him past defenders, compared to the drilling ability of Messi.
Both players are unique in their own way, with different skill sets and attributes. They possess similar goal scoring stats, and the difference between them is so slight that it’s hard to conclude who is better.
The infographic below contains more details about the career and achievements of the two sports stars. Check it out:
