Who is better? Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi? The two greatest living soccer players not only compete in the same league but for rival squads. Messi has had the edge over Ronaldo the last few years as Barcelona has been the supreme squad in European soccer, but Ronaldo may be having the best year of his career. Every week Latinos post compares both players and tries to determine who had the better performance during the week.
Let us look at what the two superstars accomplished during the ninth week of La Liga.
Messi: Messi continues his dominance in the Spanish League, but he was surprisingly quiet in Barcelona's match against Celtc in the UCL. Messi created some plays but was contained by the opposition and when they needed him to provide the clutch winning play, he was unable to deliver. The same could not be said for Saturday's match against Rayo Vallecano. Messi scored two goals, including the 300th one of his career in the 48th minute that helped Barcelona establish their grip on the match. He added a final goal that was a result of some sloppy play from Rayo Vallecano.
Ronaldo: Ronaldo continued his brilliance in a Real Madrid sweater as he scored in both matches this week to prolong his streak to eight straight games of scoring. He added a tying goal in the 2-1 loss to Borussia Dortmund, but he had three shots on goal during the match and played well. His goal was superb as he raced behind the defense and chipped the ball over the oncoming keeper into the far end of the net. He only got better in the match against Mallorca where he added a brace and assisted on Gonzalo Higuain's second goal. His first goal in that match showcased complete composure as he took a pass on the far end of the box, controlled it and shot it into the far side of the net. He did this all with a defender right on top of him without losing his composure and keeping calm. His second goal was similar to his Dortmund goal as he raced past the defense and shot the ball into the net on his first touch. With his assist, he passed a through ball to Higuain to secure a 3-0 lead for Madrid.
Stats Through Week 9
Messi: 14 goals, 4 assists ( 2 goals, 2 assists in UCL, 2 goals in Spanish Super Cup)
Ronaldo: 11 goals, 1 assists (5 goals in UCL, 2 goals in Spanish Super Cup)
Edge: Both Players had strong weeks and despite the fact that Messi won both of his matches, Ronaldo had a stronger week with three goals and an assist. His goal in the UCL was brilliant and he continued to establish his lead in goals scored at that the competition. Messi was shut down by Celtic, a far weaker team than Borussia Dortmund and was unable to provide the clutch moment in the match. Ronaldo was not either, but he wins this week on pure statistics and a tremendous show of skill on his goals and assist.
5-5 Draw.
*Only 9 weeks have been played, but during week 5, both players earned a point for equally strong weeks.
Read about past Weeks
Week 1,2,3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8