20/07/2025
Cristiano Ronaldo has a certain amount of goals. That's fine.
Messi has another amount. That's fine as well.
But deceiving oneself with non penalty goals, in lesser matches, is what's always amusing.
If greatness was to be measured by goal ratio, then Puskaz must be the Greatest.
They use to say Ronaldo has more games because he is older, but is that only the reason? Let's not forget that Zlatan Ibrahimovic is older than the both, started before them, but didn't play as much games as these two before he retired.
Before Messi made his debut for Barcelona, Ronaldo had played 71 matches for both Sporting and Manchester United scoring 10 goals and 14 assists.
Since then, Ronaldo has played 983 club matches, which is 40 more than Messi.
For countries, Ronaldo had played 18 matches, scored 7 goals and had 8 assists before Messi made his debut.
Since then, Ronaldo has played 203 matches which is 10 more than Leo Messi for Argentina.
It means even after Messi Made his debut, Ronaldo has played just 50 more games than him.
If we removed (17) goals scored by Ronaldo before Messi's debut, he will still have 58 more goals than Messi in 50 more games.
Being older or starting before a player doesn't guarantee more stats. (Use Puskaz and Zlatan as references).
REASONS WHY THEY PLAY MORE GAMES THAN OTHER!
-Since Messi made his debut, he has suffered more injuries than Ronaldo. Since Messi debut, Ronaldo has played 674 league games. Meanwhile, Messi has played 646. Why? Let's ignore his first season. In his second season, Messi missed 13 games in the league. In his 3rd season, he missed 11 matches. In his 4th season, he missed 8 matches. It continues like that. Even in his current team, he has missed 13 matches due to injury.
-in 21 seasons, Messi has played a total of 193 matches in clubs international competition. In the same 21 seasons, Ronaldo played 214 matches. Why? Ronaldo is more successful in International Competitions. He reached more finals than Messi.
-Meanwhile in domestic cups, Messi has played 104 games in 21 seasons compared to Ronaldo's 95 games. Why? Messi is more successful in domestic cups. He reached more final than Ronaldo. Note: in cups competition, the more you advance, the more games you play. Unlike league that is fixed for 38 games.
Continue reading in the comment section for the breakdown of International matches.