Castrol Performance data shows that Lionel Messi has been involved in more goals than Cristiano Ronaldo in the top five European leagues this season.
Both have surpassed everyone this season in terms of goal involvement. Having scored one more goal than Ronaldo, Messi has also been far more creative with 17 assists, more than twice as many as the Portuguese international.
Goals + Assists – top five European leagues 2010/11
| Player | Team | Goals | Assists | Goals + Assists |
| Messi, Lionel | Barcelona | 29 | 17 | 46 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Real Madrid | 28 | 8 | 36 |
| Di Natale, Antonio | Udinese | 26 | 7 | 33 |
| Cavani, Edinson | Napoli | 25 | 4 | 29 |
| Tévez, Carlos | Manchester City | 19 | 6 | 25 |
| Eto’o, Samuel | Internazionale | 19 | 6 | 25 |
| Ibrahimovic, Zlatan | Milan | 14 | 11 | 25 |
Ronaldo has had more shots than any other player (212) but he has been less clinical in his finishing than Messi who converts one in every four attempts. Messi also attempts more passes (over 30 more than Ronaldo per game).
Ronaldo v Messi – 2010/11 La Liga
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Player | Lionel Messi |
| Real Madrid | Team | Barcelona |
| 28 | Appearances | 28 |
| 27 | Starts | 27 |
| 2,428 | Minutes On Pitch | 2,466 |
| Goal Attempts | ||
| 28 | Goals | 29 |
| 87 | Mins per goal | 85 |
| 212 | Total shots | 135 |
| 7.6 | Shots per game | 4.8 |
| 53% | Shooting Accuracy* | 68% |
| 18% | Chance Conversion* | 26% |
| Passing | ||
| 1884 | Touches | 2722 |
| 67.3 | Touches per game | 97.2 |
| 8 | Goal Assists | 17 |
| 1,082 | Total Passes | 1,926 |
| 38.6 | Passes per game | 68.8 |
| 76% | Pass Completion % | 86% |
| Crossing | ||
| 2.7 | Crosses per game | 1.5 |
| 11% | Cross Completion % | 14% |
| Dribbling | ||
| 5.6 | Dribbles per game | 10.3 |
| 45% | Dribble Completion % | 55% |
*excludes blocked shots
Ronaldo has found it difficult to score, create a goal or win against Messi.
Castrol Performance data shows that Cristiano Ronaldo has yet to score or deliver an assist against Lionel Messi at club level.
Ronaldo v Messi – competitive encounters
|
Date |
Ronaldo’s team |
Messi’s team |
Ven. |
Score |
Res. |
Ronaldo |
Messi |
||
|
Goals |
Assists |
Goals |
Assists |
||||||
|
23/04/2008 |
Man United |
Barcelona |
A |
0-0 |
D |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
29/04/2008 |
Man United |
Barcelona |
H |
1-0 |
W |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
27/05/2009 |
Man United |
Barcelona |
N |
0-2 |
L |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
29/11/2009 |
Real Madrid |
Barcelona |
A |
0-1 |
L |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
10/04/2010 |
Real Madrid |
Barcelona |
H |
0-2 |
L |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
29/11/2010 |
Real Madrid |
Barcelona |
A |
0-5 |
L |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
|
09/02/2011 |
Portugal |
Argentina |
N |
1-2 |
L |
1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
|
Total goal involvement |
1 |
6 |
|||||||
The two players have met on seven occasions (six times at club level and once on the international stage) and Messi has been on the winning side five times, whereas Ronaldo just once, back in April 2008 with Manchester Utd. With Real Madrid, Ronaldo has lost all three of his encounters with Messi.
Ronaldo broke his duck against Messi with a goal for Portugal against Argentina in a friendly last February but still ended on the losing side, courtesy of a goal and an assist from Messi.
Also See:
Great Football Player Rivalries
La Liga Statistical Review: Barcelona v Ronaldo
Real Madrid v Barcelona Preview
Why Victor Valdes is better than Iker Casillas
Real Madrid v Barcelona: Comparing Carvalho v Pique
Real Madrid v Barcelona: Alonso v Xavi stats and the art of playmaking
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