5 times Cristiano Ronaldo got the better of his arch-rival Lionel Messi

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are set to renew acquaintances for the first time in two years.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are set to renew acquaintances for the first time in two years.

All eyes will be at the Camp Nou when Lionel Messi's Barcelona host Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus in a clash of the titans in the 2020-21 UEFA Champions League.

Both sides are through to the last 16, but the game will decide who finishes atop Group G; the Catalans are currently three points ahead of the Serie A champions.

However, a bigger narrative surrounding the fixture is the long-awaited reunion of old foes Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, who haven't clashed on the field since the Portuguese ace left Real Madrid in 2018.

After meeting each other in 35 games in all competitions, the two superstars prepare to renew acquaintances at the Camp Nou. While Messi's team has been victorious on 16 occasions, Ronaldo's has triumphed ten times.

Cristiano Ronaldo missed the first leg of Juventus's game against Barcelona in Turin after testing positive for COVID-19 but is certain to start on Tuesday. That gives fans an opportunity to relive one of the greatest player-rivalries in the game's history.


Five times Cristiano Ronaldo got the better of Lionel Messi on the field

Ahead of the former Galactico's highly-anticipated return to the Camp Nou, let's go through the five best moments when Cristiano Ronaldo got the better of his arch-rival Lionel Messi:


#5 Real Madrid 2-1 Barcelona (Spanish Super Cup, August 2012)

Cristiano Ronaldo made a mockery of Barcelona's defence with a wonder strike.
Cristiano Ronaldo made a mockery of Barcelona's defence with a wonder strike.

In 2012, Cristiano Ronaldo was in peak form, scoring in all six Clasicos that calendar year across three different competitions. He bagged seven goals during this imperious run. However, his brace in the Spanish Super Cup at the Santiago Bernabeu was something special.

Real Madrid, a counter-attacking beast at that time under Jose Mourinho, produced an incredible move on the break that culminated with Cristiano Ronaldo effecting a superb backheel flick to control the ball before lashing a powerful low-drive beyond Victor Valdes.

Lionel Messi responded with a peach of a free-kick a while later, but it was the Portuguese who had the last laugh as Los Blancos held on to clinch the Super Cup trophy.


#4 Barcelona 1-3 Real Madrid (Spanish Super Cup, August 2017)

Cristiano Ronaldo imitated Lionel Messi's shirt celebration at the Camp Nou.
Cristiano Ronaldo imitated Lionel Messi's shirt celebration at the Camp Nou.

In his final season with Real Madrid, Cristiano Ronaldo faced Barcelona on three occasions - twice in the league and once in the Super Cup - scoring once in each competition. However, his goal in the Super Cup was extraordinary.

The El Clasico rivals, playing each other in the Spanish Super Cup for the first time in five years, were heading to a 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou after Lionel Messi scored in the 77th minute to cancel out Gerard Pique's own goal. And then, Cristiano Ronaldo happened.

After playing a neat one-two with Isco to set up a counter-attack, the Portuguese scampered upfield before cutting inside Pique and lashing an unstoppable thunderbolt into the top corner from 20 yards to restore his side's lead.

Even though he was sent off before the full-time whistle, Cristiano Ronaldo appeared to take a dig at Lionel Messi by holding his shirt aloft in celebration, imitating the Argentine's iconic moment at the Santiago Bernabeu a few months earlier.

#3 Barcelona 1-2 Real Madrid (La Liga, April 2012)

Cristiano Ronaldo effectively sealed the La Liga title for Real Madrid in this game.
Cristiano Ronaldo effectively sealed the La Liga title for Real Madrid in this game.

Cristiano Ronaldo effectively sealed the 2011-12 La Liga title for Real Madrid by netting the winner at Camp Nou in a tense El Clasico to end his side's long-wait for a domestic trophy.

With just four points separating the two arch-rivals after 34 games, Barcelona needed to win to keep alive the title race, but Cristiano Ronaldo played spoilsport once again.

Just minutes after Alexis Sanchez appeared to have secured a draw for the hosts by cancelling out Sami Khedira's early opener, Cristiano Ronaldo capped off a silky counter-attacking move by rounding Valdes to slot home from about 20 yards out.

Cristiano Ronaldo's 'calma' celebration was very popular at the time, and the Portuguese produced another one at the Camp Nou to silence the frenzied crowd, something that is still remembered fondly by the Madridistas.


#2 Barcelona 1-2 Real Madrid (La Liga, April 2016)

Cristiano Ronaldo put Barcelona to the sword in their own backyard once again.
Cristiano Ronaldo put Barcelona to the sword in their own backyard once again.

Four years after his El Clasico heroics at Camp Nou, history repeated itself when Cristiano Ronaldo netted a late winner at the home of Barcelona to settle another high-stakes Clasico. Even though Barcelona just about managed to hang on to the La Liga title this time, the Portuguese got the better of Lionel Messi yet again.

With the game deadlocked at 1-1 in the closing embers, Los Blancos had seen Gareth Bale's perfectly-legitimate winner ruled out and Sergio Ramos sent off too, but cometh the hour, cometh Cristiano Ronaldo.

Chesting down Bale's superb cross at the far post, Cristiano Ronaldo lashed a shot between the legs of Claudio Bravo to net an 85th-minute clincher and dampen the mood at the Camp Nou yet again.


#1 Real Madrid 1-0 Barcelona (Copa Del Rey Final, April 2011)

Cristiano Ronaldo ended Real Madrid's long wait for silverware with this goal.
Cristiano Ronaldo ended Real Madrid's long wait for silverware with this goal.

Cristiano Ronaldo's early exchanges with Barcelona after joining Real Madrid didn't yield positive results. In fact, he went five El Clasicos without a victory until this occasion, which came in the midst of a hectic run of four games between the sides in a span of just three weeks.

After Barcelona eliminated Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals, Cristiano Ronaldo restored Los Blancos' lost pride by helping them clinch the Copa Del Rey title and deny Pep Guardiola's juggernaut a second continental treble in just three years.

In the closing moments of that game, Los Blancos' legendary number 7 scored his trademark towering header beyond Barcelona custodian Jose Pinto to end Real Madrid's 24-month wait for a title.

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Edited by Bhargav