Arguably one of the grandest matches in European football, El Clasico kicks off in a few hours from now. In what has traditionally been the biggest rivalry in Spain, a sub-plot has become the driving narrative of all Real Madrid versus Barcelona games in the best part of the last decade.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are the world’s two best footballers, and their rivalry on the pitch is what embellishes El Clasico. Both Ronaldo and Messi have been sweeping all kinds of awards for the last few years, and the duo’s monopoly over the footballing world isn’t stopping anytime soon.
As part of the Ronaldo vs Messi discourse which divides football fans like no other thing, the much-celebrated football game franchise, FIFA, has also added to the rivalry with its well-documented rating system that marginally puts one among Ronaldo and Messi above the other on an objective basis every year.
In its latest offering, FIFA 17, the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, Ronaldo, is the highest rated player, suggesting that like most in the footballing world, FIFA 17 has also acknowledged the feats of the Portuguese over the last year.
However, that doesn’t mean Messi is lagging behind by a long distance. The Argentine’s overall rating in FIFA 17 is 93, just below Ronaldo’s 94. That aside, there are many other attributes where one trumps the other, and we look at them here.
Since both Ronaldo and Messi are attackers, it wouldn’t do justice to them if we compare their defensive attributes. They are best known for their attacking skills, and here is a comparison of their attacking skills.
Attacking attributes
On face value, Ronaldo is much better than Messi in the categories listed under attacking attributes. While Messi’s crossing rating of 77 and heading accuracy of 71 are below the highest standards, Ronaldo stands out with ratings of 84 and 85 in them respectively. Overall, the Portuguese has the more consistent attacking numbers, but Messi’s finishing rating of 95 is better than Ronaldo’s 93 and short passing attribute of 88 is better than Ronaldo’s 83.
Skill attributes
Here, Messi totally annihilates Ronaldo in every single attribute. The Argentine’s dribbling, curve, free-kick accuracy, long passing and ball control ratings of 97, 89, 90, 87 and 95 respectively are better than Ronaldo’s 92, 81, 76, 77 and 93 respectively.
Also Read: Watch: What happened when the El Clasico was simulated on FIFA 17
Movement attributes
In the movement stakes, it’s an equal battle between Ronaldo and Messi, with the Barcelona attacker just edging out the Real Madrid forward. Messi’s acceleration rating of 92 is slightly better than Ronaldo’s 91, while the Portuguese boasts a better sprint speed rating of 92 compared to Messi’s 87.
Both players’ agility and reactions ratings are fairly similar, but it is Messi’s balance rating of 95 which tilts this criterion in his favour as Ronaldo’s balance rating is a sorry 63.
Power attributes
As expected, Ronaldo beats Messi in this category quite convincingly. Ronaldo’s shot power, jumping, stamina, strength and long shots ratings are respectively 92, 95, 92, 80, 90 — a fair distance ahead of Messi’s ratings of 85, 68, 74, 59, 88, which is not elite stuff from the Argentine.
FIFA 17’s ratings just go to show that like in the real world, Ronaldo and Messi are pretty inseparable at the top of the sport. Both have certain attributes where they stand out, while there are also certain weaknesses in their games.
It remains to be seen who among the two wins the individual duel in the El Clasico later today, and it is fairly certain that whoever wins it will also end up winning the match for their team, such is their level of impact on their respective teams.
Also Read: Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo - Statistical comparison
