Ranking the 5 greatest goalscorers in El Clasico history

#3 Cristiano Ronaldo - 18 goals

Cristiano Ronaldo holds the record for the most consecutive El Clasicos scored in.

Alongside his eternal rival Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo dominated El Clasico in the last decade with his spectacular displays in front of goal. The Portuguese bagged 18 goals for Real Madrid against Barcelona during his nine-year stint at the Santiago Bernabeu. Nine of those goals came in La Liga, five came in the Copa del Rey and four in the Spanish Super Cup.

Ronaldo holds the record for the most consecutive games scored in the history of the famous fixture. He bagged seven goals in six consecutive games across the 2011-12 and 2012-13 campaigns. In total, Ronaldo faced Barcelona 31 times as a Real Madrid player, recording nine victories, eight draws and 13 defeats.

---

#2 Alfredo di Stefano - 18 goals

Alfredo Di Stefano was a real thorn in Barcelona's flesh during his days with Real Madrid.

Alfredo Di Stefano was the all-time goalscorer in El Clasico history for several years before Lionel Messi broke his record in 2014. During his time as a Real Madrid player, Di Stefano bagged a whopping 18 goals for the Spanish giants against their arch-rivals.

He scored 14 of them in La Liga, two in the Copa del Rey and two in Europe. The Argentine holds the record for being the oldest goalscorer in El Clasico history. He was 37 years and 164 days old when he scored against Barcelona during a Liga clash on December 15, 1963.

---

#1 Lionel Messi - 26 goals

Lionel Messi is the greatest goalscorer in El Clasico history.

Lionel Messi is, without a doubt, the greatest player in the history of El Clasico. The Argentine participated in the fixture for the first time in his career as an 18-year-old on November 19, 2005. He made an instant impact, assisting Samuel Eto'o to open the scoring before Ronaldinho scored twice to secure a 3-0 victory for Barcelona.

What followed thereafter was several years of the playmaker's brilliant exploits against Real Madrid, both home and away. Lionel Messi is El Clasico's all-time top goalscorer, with an impressive tally of 26 goals to his name across competitions.

He scored 18 of them in La Liga, six in the Spanish Super Cup and two in the Champions League. The six-time Ballon d'Or winner faced Real Madrid 45 times during his days at the Camp Nou, recording 19 victories, 11 draws and 15 defeats.

Messi holds the record for the most assists in El Clasico history (14) and appearances (45, shared with Sergio Ramos). Alongside the likes of Ferenc Puskas, Jaime Lazcano and Santiago Bernabeu, the Argentine also has the most hat-tricks (2) in the iconic fixture.