Past vs Present: Luis Figo vs Cristiano Ronaldo – Who is Portugal’s greatest number 7?

Luis Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo are both easily one of the best players of their respective generations and there is no argument on that front. But recently, the veteran Figo claimed that he had the pleasure of playing with and against players who are better the two best players today – Cristiano and Messi.So has Cristiano done enough to prove his former teammate wrong? Is Ronaldo a better footballer than Figo, who was one of the heroes of his generation? Or is he just the one of the best today?The similarities between two of the finest players from Portugal go way beyond their nationalities and hence it is natural to draw comparisons between the county’s former number seven and captain to the present one.Is this going to be a debate with a proper answer or is it going to be one of those chicken vs egg scenario? You shall see at the end of this slideshow.

#1 Goals and Assists

Although both players have spent majority of their playing careers as a winger, Figo’s goal scoring record doesn’t even come close to that of his compatriots and this is despite the veteran playing more seasons in a less competitive Portuguese League than Cristiano and racking up more appearances in the club and International level.

Figo’s has scored just 133 goals in the club level during his entire professional career while Ronaldo has scored more than that in his last three seasons with Real Madrid alone.

The current Portuguese captain’s goals to games ratio shot up astronomically after his move to Real Madrid as he has so far scored 290 goals in 281 matches for the Los Blancos, which is more than a goal per game. In comparison to this, the 30 year old scored just 118 goals in 292 appearances for Manchester United. Overall he has 413 goals in 604 appearances.

For the Portugal Senior side, Ronaldo has scored 20 goals more than Figo who has 32, even though the latter has played more games for his country.

On the assists front, Figo’s record is far more superior to his goal scoring one. The former Real Madrid and Barcelona star previously held the record for the most assists in La Liga with 106 before it was broken by Lionel Messi recently.

Ronaldo on the other hand has 58 assists to his name in the La Liga and a further 41 in the Premier League but it still doesn’t add up to Figo’s 106 in the Spanish League alone. But what is to be remembered is that Ronaldo still has a few more years left in his career.

Due to Ronaldo’s incredibly superior goals tally this goes to him.

#2 Trophies

Ronaldo is one of the very few people to have won a Champions League trophy with two different clubs; but he has so far managed to win only four league titles with Manchester United and Real Madrid combined. Figo on the other hand lifted the same number of league titles in his four seasons in Italy with Internazionale.

In addition to his league triumphs in Italy, Figo has won two league titles each with Barcelona and Real Madrid as well as the domestic cup tournament once in Portugal, twice in Spain and once again in Italy and the domestic Super Cup three time each in Spain and Italy.

His only downside in comparison to Ronaldo in terms of trophies is that he has won the UEFA Champions League only once in his career despite playing for Barcelona, Real Madrid and Internazionale. He was won other European titles like the UEFA Super Cup once each with Barcelona and Real Madrid & the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup once with the Catalans.

Ronaldo on the other hand may not have won many league titles, but he is the only player to have won all the possible trophies with two different clubs. This means he has won the League, League Cup(s), League Super Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup with both Real Madrid and Manchester United.

On the International stage, both players have not won any trophies with the senior side and they were both part of the Portuguese team that finished runner up at the 2004 Euro.

Due to Figo’s superior league triumphs compared to Ronaldo, this one goes to the veteran

#3 Adaptability & Versatility

Figo and Ronaldo both started their careers with local clubs Sporting in Portugal, before moving abroad to greener pastures.

Figo played top level football for two decades in three different countries and four different clubs. His first move was to Spain to play for FC Barcelona and then later for the Catalans’ arch rivals Real Madrid before ending his career on a high in Italy with Internazionale.

Ronaldo on the other hand played for one season with Sporting in Portugal before moving to Manchester United in England. He spent six successful seasons with Manchester United before making a huge move to Real Madrid in 2009. Like Figo, Ronaldo too has played his trade in three different countries successfully.

Not only did Figo and Ronaldo adapt to the playing style and conditions in different countries, the duo also managed to operate in different playing roles.

Figo started out as right winger during his physical peak to make use of his inch perfect crosses with his stronger right foot. But as he started losing pace and mobility with age, he was shifted to a more central role as the attacking midfielder, particularly during his time with Inter and he was successful in that role as well.

Ronaldo also started out as tricky classical winger down the right hand side who could beat his player with pace and tricks and supply crosses into the box, but due to his ability to shoot from distance and score goals, he was later deployed as an inverted winger so that he could shoot with his stronger right foot when he drifts in from the left wing. In addition to being deployed on either wings, Ronaldo has played as an attacking midfielder, a second striker and as a striker.

It is clear that both Figo and Ronaldo are capable of adapting to the requirements of different leagues while playing in different attacking positions and so when it comes to adaptability and versatility the duo share the spoils.

#4 Raising the bar

There are no doubts or second thoughts about this one. Cristiano Ronaldo’s hunger to succeed and his dedication to the game are second to none.

For example, after arriving at Manchester United, he underwent a major body transformation. He quickly went from being a lean young kid to athletically built adult in a very short time. Former Manchester United strength and conditioning coach, Mike Clegg, and French legend, Zinedine Zidane, have praised Ronaldo’s work ethic and dedication to improve on the training field.

His drive and determination is fuelled by the desire to be one of the best players in the World, but he has also stated that he would rather be remembered as a role model than one of the World’s best football players.

Ronaldo’s age old rivalry with Lionel Messi has often forced him to keep improving his game so that the Argentine doesn’t pull away from him and his perseverance was recently rewarded with two back to back Ballon d’Or trophies. Now he has set the bar high for him as well as Messi for the ongoing season.

At the age of 30, he already has numerous footballing records to his name. With a few more good years of football left in him, his status as one of the best players of all time will be cemented strongly.

#5 Entertainment Factor

Football players are forever etched in the memory of the fans when they produce moments that can lift these fans off their seat in awe and excitement.

Although Figo was capable of producing such moments, he played in an era with players like Zidane, Ronaldo Nazario, Ronaldinho and David Beckham who are renowned for their entertaining game even more than the Portuguese. In fact, Figo may not have been the most entertaining player in his own team.

As for Cristiano, he has had huge competitions from the likes of Ronaldinho, Kaka and Messi throughout his career and has still come out on top as one of the most entertaining footballers of today. He is the most popular athlete in the World today and that too by a huge margin ahead of second placed Leo Messi. This makes it obvious that Ronaldo’s popularity is not just because of his performance footballing wise but also because of how well he manages to entertain the fans.

Cristiano knows to work the crowd with his flamboyant game style, his bad boy attitude and his amazing performances on the field.

Ronaldo steals this one with no competition.

#6 Records

Ronaldo’s records may be smaller in comparison to Lionel Messi, but it is in no way insignificant. The Portuguese man, who once held the record for the biggest transfer fee, holds numerous records to his name and some of them have only been achieved by him.

His records are plenty to state them all here, but some notable records held by the Portuguese presently include being the only players to have won all major trophies with two different clubs, fastest La Liga player to reach 150 & 200 goals, most hat-tricks in La Liga, first player to score in ten consecutive Champions League away games, first player to score more than 10 goals in three consecutive Champions League seasons and most goals scored in the UEFA Champions League group stages. Ronaldo was also the most expensive player between 2009 and 2013 before his record was broken by now teammate Gareth Bale.

Figo on the other hand held the record for the most assists in the La Liga with 106, but now that too doesn’t belong to him as it was recently broken by Lionel Messi. He also held the record for the player with the highest transfer fee for a year only to be broken by his former teammate Zidane upon moving to Real Madrid in 2001.

It is quite clear that Figo has come second to many other players in terms of records held, but Ronaldo still holds numerous to his name despite the stiff competition he has with Lionel Messi.

#7 Conclusion

Luis Figo may have been one of the best players of his generation, but he wasn’t the best as he there were many other players who hogged the limelight as much as Figo did.

As for Cristiano Ronaldo, despite playing in an era with Lionel Messi, he has shown that he has what it takes to be the best in the business.

It is quite clear that as player Ronaldo has achieved much more than Figo did and he can still improve his current records and statistics.

We have a clear outright winner in Cristiano Ronaldo after comparing two of Portugal’s greatest players, but that doesn’t take anything away from Figo who is still an amazing player.

Ronaldo incredible feats and achievements have been rightly recognized by Portuguese football as well and they named the current captain as the best player in Portuguese history in the Gala Quinas de Ouro ceremony which was part of the commemorations of the 100th anniversary of the Portuguese football federation.

Not only did Ronaldo beat Luis Figo to the award, he also defeated the late Eusebio in the voting.