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#3 Top scorer in three different leagues
Cristiano Ronaldo is a world-class goalscorer, and he has proved to be excellent in that regard time and again.
The 36-year old won the Premier League Golden Boot with Manchester United for the 2007/08 season, in which Cristiano Ronaldo scored 31 goals in 34 league games. With Real Madrid he won the Pichichi Trophy thrice, and is Los Blancos' all-time top goalscorer.
Cristiano Ronaldo was the top goalscorer in Serie A this season, having scored 29 league goals 33 appearances for Juventus. Lionel Messi, on the other hand, has won the Pichichi Trophy eight times with Barcelona.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo boasts a higher number of international goals
The stick often used to beat Lionel Messi with is his performance on the international stage.
Argentina have often struggled despite the abundance of talent, while Cristiano Ronaldo won the Euros in 2016 with Portugal. The Portuguese forward is regarded as one of his country's greatest sportspeople. Ronaldo has 174 caps for Portugal, and has scored an eye-watering 103 goals since making his debut in 2003.
Meanwhile, Lionel Messi has 143 caps for Argentina, and has scored 72 goals. With Cristiano Ronaldo still going strong, it looks unlikely that Lionel Messi will reach Cristiano Ronaldo's goal tally at the international level.
#1 Winning the Ballon d'Or with two different clubs
Arguments between fans of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are generally at their peak around the time when the Ballon d'Or is to be announced.
The two legendary footballers have dominated the awards for quite some time now. While Lionel Messi has six Ballon d'Or awards compared to Cristiano Ronaldo's five, Messi's have all come with Barcelona.
Cristiano Ronaldo, on the other hand, won his first with Manchester United, while his next four came with Real Madrid. In recent seasons the assurance that one of the two forwards will win the award has dwindled.
While Lionel Messi won in 2019, Croatian midfielder Luka Modric was awarded the trophy in 2018. Last season, Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski was the favorite to win the award had the ceremony been conducted.
Also Read: Juventus attacker Paulo Dybala chooses between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
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