Here are the reasons why Lionel Messi is ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo

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The debate about Messi and Ronaldo has been going on for years. This is because the two are incomparable, each in their own way. Nevertheless, legendary footballers never differ that much when comparing the two. Here are the reasons why Lionel Messi is ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo.

1 Dribbling And Technical Skill

Ask any football player, pundit, or football expert to name one player capable of dribbling past five to six players; he will definitely mention ‘Lionel Messi.’ The Argentine can dribble past an entire defense, compared to Ronaldo, who relies on his physical ability. Lionel Messi is impossible to stop especially when he builds up a head of steam, changing direction so quickly with the ball on his feet. His small body frame is an asset, which enables him to change momentum at high speeds, something no other football player possesses. Messi’s vision is much superior to Ronaldo. This can be proved by the number of assists in Messi’s name for both club and country.

2 Individual Accolades

The Argentine ace has won five Ballon d’Or awards compared to Ronaldo’s four. Also, the Barcelona ace won the Golden Ball award during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil; something Ronaldo has not achieved yet. Even though Ronaldo is slowly closing in on the total number of individual awards, Messi remains superior, with 6 LFP League Player of the Year trophies to his name. Consequently, Messi has 44 individual awards, 2 more than the Portuguese player does. However, Cristiano Ronaldo has been shortlisted in this year’s Ballon d’Or awards, with Messi’s name missing.

3 Lionel Messi Is Disciplined

In terms of discipline, Ronaldo trails the Argentinian ace. Ronaldo has been involved in fights on the football pitch in various instances. Messi, on the other hand, tries his level best not to be booked. In terms of discipline and integrity, Messi comes on top, with the 29-year-old having received only one red card throughout his entire career, as opposed to Ronaldo’s 9. The last time Messi received multiple yellow cards was in 2013-2014 season, where he was booked three times. On the hand, Ronaldo has more bookings, with a total of 16 yellow cards in a single season.

4 Messi Is More Clinical

Although Ronaldo managed to score more in the just concluded World Cup in Russia, Messi still holds the overall goal to game ratio, averaging a whopping 534 goals in 669 games for both club and country. Moreover, Messi’s conversion rate stands at 67 percent, compared to Ronaldo whose conversion rate stands at 56 percent. This means Messi is more of a perpetual goal scorer. Ronaldo is a pure finisher when it comes to goals, but Messi is more prolific.

Bottom Line

The one thing stopping Lionel Messi from becoming the best footballer ever to play the game is the failure to win the world cup. Even when you take away the goals plus the honors from him, Messi will still be a joy to watch. He never disappoints. He always plays for the team, engaging his team-mates with intelligent runs and assists. Ronaldo has also managed to set records this year, even scoring a hat-trick against Spain in the just concluded World cup. Consequently, these two are so good that it is sometimes hard to pick one.

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