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Cristiano Ronaldo recently moved to Juventus, ending his nine-year stint in Spain. It will be an understatement to say that his spell at the Spanish capital was phenomenally good. The Portuguese won numerous trophies, four Ballon d'Ors and scored tons of goals to make his stay in Spain truly astonishing.
While there is no denying the fact that Ronaldo had an unbelievable spell at Real Madrid, was he really the best player in Spain? Did Ronaldo actually conquer Spain or was he in Lionel Messi's shadow?
Ronaldo might be the greatest player to ever play for Los Blancos but it remains to be seen whether he outshone his arch rival from Argentina. He did wonders for Real Madrid in the Champions League, but when talking about domestic performances in Spain things look slightly different for the Portuguese number 7 with respect to Messi.
Here's a comparative analysis of the achievements of the two men in Spain:
La Liga titles
Since Ronaldo joined Real Madrid from Manchester United, the Portuguese has been involved in nine seasons for Los Blancos. In those nine seasons, Real Madrid won the trophy twice whereas Barcelona claimed the title on six occasions and Atletico Madrid won once.
So by a simple statistical look, we get to know that while Ronaldo has two La Liga titles, his counterpart Messi has won the trophy six times since 2009. The difference is startling but so has been Messi's dominance in Spain.
Messi 1-0 Ronaldo
Copa del Rey titles
What FA Cup is to England, Copa del Rey is to Spain. Since Ronaldo's £80 million move to Real Madrid from Manchester United, the star winger has won the trophy twice with Real Madrid. On the other hand, Messi has been involved in five Copa del Rey winning teams.
The difference is more than evident here. While Real might have had dominance in UCL, Barcelona hold the edge in domestic competitions.
Messi and Ronaldo have been an integral part of their clubs, playing their respective roles to the T in several trophy-winning campaigns. But with five titles to Ronaldo's two, Messi takes the cake here.
Messi 2-0 Ronaldo
Goals (domestic)
One thing common between Ronaldo and Messi is their habit of scoring a massive amount of goals. Since Ronaldo's move to Real Madrid, the former United winger has scored 311 goals in 292 La Liga appearances, for more than 1 goal per match. Not many players can boast a record like that.
But the Barcelona man is right up there with an equally impressive record of 329 goals in 309 appearances since Ronaldo moved to Spain.
While their record in La Liga is somewhat equally good, their stats in Copa del Rey are a bit inclined towards the Argentine. Messi has played 52 times in Spain's cup competition since 2009, scoring 39 goals. His Portuguese rival meanwhile has notched up 22 goals in 30 outings for Los Blancos.
Ronaldo is known for his goal-scoring exploits, but when it comes to domestic competitions the Barcelona number 10 is equally as impressive. And the La Liga records speak for these legends too, as the first two positions in the all-time leading goal scorers list in La Liga history belong to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The world will miss one hell of a rivalry now that Ronaldo is gone.
Messi 3-1 Ronaldo
Assists (domestic)
Apart from scoring tons of goals, the two forwards have been providers for their teammates as well. Messi is the all-time top assist provider in La Liga with 125 assists to his name. The Barcelona legend is a great team player who remains busy all the time on the field.
Ronaldo has fared well for Real Madrid too, with 85 assists to his name. The Portuguese might have played fewer matches but the Argentine's average gives him a slight advantage once again.
Messi 4-1 Ronaldo
Hat-tricks
The former Real Madrid man will always be remembered as one of the greatest goalscorers of the game. No matter what the conditions, the Portuguese finds a way to get on the scoring charts. Despite join Real Madrid just nine years ago, Ronaldo is the man with the most hat-tricks scored in Spain - 34.
His rival Messi isn’t far behind, with 30 hat-tricks to his name. But considering the fact that he has been playing for Barcelona much longer, Ronaldo's record looks all the more mind-boggling.
One for the former Real Madrid man.
Messi 4-2 Ronaldo
La Liga best player
LFP introduced the La Liga awards in 2008. Every year since then, awards are presented to the best player, best goalkeeper, best forward, best midfielder, best defender and the best coach in the league.
The first recipient of the best player award was the Argentine Lionel Messi. He also claimed the best forward award for his breakthrough season.
But here we’re going to emphasize the time span after 2009, since Ronaldo started playing for Real Madrid only then. The Barcelona man has won the best player award on five occasions since 2009, whereas Ronaldo has just one to his name.
The same story is noticed in the best forward race as well with Messi scooping up six awards while the Portuguese Ronaldo claiming it just once.
Messi 5-2 Ronaldo
Pichichi trophy
The famous Pichichi trophy is awarded to the player with most goals in a single La Liga season. Over the years many great players have won famous trophy awarded by Marca.
The Barcelona number 10 edges out his Real Madrid rival here as well with five to his name against Ronaldo's three.
The Real Madrid number 7 might have fared better in Europe, but domestically Messi was the better scorer in most of the seasons.
Messi 6-2 Ronaldo
How they fared in El Clasico
It is rightly said that when Real Madrid play Barcelona, the world stops. El Clasico is the name of the game played between two of the best clubs on the planet.
This is where Messi has been the most dominant. In 38 appearances for the Blaugrana, the little magician has scored 26 times, making him the top scorer in the world’s most watched club game.
The Portuguese ace isn’t far behind with 18 goals in 30 apps, joint second top scorer along with legendary Real Madrid forward Alfredo di Stefano.
But the main difference comes in victories. While Ronaldo has been on the winning side just 8 times out 30 - losing 14 and the rest 8 ending in a draw, the Argentine skipper has won 17 times against Los Blancos - losing 12 and drawing 9.
Ronaldo might have played fewer matches but his counterpart has got a better winning ratio.
Messi 6-2 Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo will always be a la Liga legend but to say he conquered Spain isn't exactly appropriate.
