Ronaldo and Messi in the 2011-2012 Season 72 goals Messi 59 goals Ronaldo Is Messi getting more chances because of the team he is in? Ronaldo has 255 shots (99 on goal) in La Liga Messi has 195 shots (99 on goal) in La Liga Is Messi getting easier goals as a product of the team he is in? 12/59 Ronaldo goals considered tap-ins (20.3%) 8/72 Messi goals considered tap-ins (11.1%) 14/59 Ronaldo goals from penalty kicks (23.7%) 14/72 Messi goals from penalty kicks (19.4%) Is Messi being selfish with the ball to create more goals for himself? 28 assists by Messi out of 121 shots created (latter stat as of May 2nd). 16 assists by Ronaldo out of 81 shots created (latter stat of May 2nd). Is Ronaldo involved more in the midfield, passing the ball? 1932/2239 passes completed by Messi (86.3%) as of May 1st. 1123/1438 passes completed by Ronaldo (78.1%) as of May 1st. Is it perhaps that Ronaldo creates more danger with his skills and dribbling? Messi 213 dribbles completed. Ronaldo 94 dribbles completed. Ok maybe not. Here are the things Ronaldo does better than Messi, but not enough to be statistically significant. Penalty Kick Efficiency 14/16 PKs scored by Ronaldo (87.5%) 14/17 PKs scored by Messi (82.4%) Free Kicks 4 FKs scored by Ronaldo (not sure out of how many attempts). 3 FKs scored by Messi (not sure out of how many attempts). Wait! There is one thing Ronaldo does better than Messi, significantly. Headers 5 headers scored by Ronaldo 2 headers scored by Messi I was going to go with Messi being the best player this season, but after seeing the statistics for headers I have to say that Ronaldo is better and a more complete player than Messi. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What's considered a tap-in goal? The player received a pass from a teammate in front of goal to "tap it in" with any body part. The player did not have to steal the ball from an opponent or recover it. The shot did not need too much power or accuracy to beat the goalkeeper. The player did not participate in the immediate build up. The player did not have to beat any other players to score or beat the keeper in a one-on-one. Messi Tap-ins #6 Villareal #7 Osasuna #8 Osasuna #18 Mallorca #32 Real Betis #38 Bayer Leverkusen #49 Racing Santander #64 Rayo Vallecone Ronaldo Tap-ins #1 Barcelona #3 Zaragoza #4 Zaragoza #9 Ajax #10 Malaga #31 Zaragoza #33 Levante #35 Racing Santander #39 Betis #42 CSKA Moscow #45 Real Sociedad #48 APOEL Questionable Tap-ins (not counted) Messi #19 Mallorca #40 Valencia Ronaldo #2 Zaragoza #12 Malaga -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sources http://soccernet.espn.go.com/team/squad/_/id/83/league/esp.1/barcelona?cc=5901 http://www.goal.com/en/news/1717/ed...-v-cristiano-ronaldo-head-to-head-real-madrid http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...-is-better-than-cristiano-ronaldo-this-season Messi http://www.ronaldo7.net/video/goals-2011-2012/goals-2011-2012.html
It's easy to get carried away with statistics, but those stats support the overwhelming world-wide opinion that Messi is easily the best in the world now. In fact, only on BigSoccer is this even debated (and even here only certain sub-groups of people dispute Messi being #1 - yes, the usual suspects).
At only 24......... Records Most goals scored in a season in all competitions: 73 goals Most goals scored in a single league season: 50 goals Most goals scored in a single UEFA Champions League season: 14 goals Most La Liga hat-tricks in a season: 8 hat-tricks Most UEFA Champions League hat-tricks: 3 hat-tricks Only player to score 2 hat-trick in a Champions League season Highest scorer in a single UEFA Champions League game: 5 goals Most UEFA Champions League top scorer award: 4 awards The only player to receive the UEFA Champions League top scorer award 4 years in a row Most La Liga home goals in a season: 35 goals Most consecutive league matches scored in: 10 matches Youngest player to score 150 league goals: 24 years and 270 days Most goals scored in the Supercopa de España: 8 goals Most goals scored in FIFA Club World Cup: 4 goals Fastest Barcelona hat-trick: completed in 17th minutes Barcelona Record Goalscorer: 253 goals Barcelona Record Goalscorer in UEFA Champions League: 51 goals Barcelona Record Goalscorer in European Competitions: 52 goals Barcelona Record Goalscorer in international Competitions: 56 goals
fun fact for those who think Messi isnt complete enough as a player. CL 2009 final = header goal CL 2011 final = Left foot goal Club world club 2009 final = chest goal Copa del rey final 2012 = right foot goal
Poor Marcelo, no matter what color shirt he's wearing it's the same story: Leo skinned him alive and was off to golazo-land.
I love how Xavi keep posting Argentina's match on his FB stats . I know Messi support Spain after Argentina lost in 2010 and certainly his fav team in this Euro
This doesn't get old, the biggest Ronaldo miss against Denmark. Too bad Varela bailed out Portugal. Someone needs to make a gif:
This one touches on the sour economies which really are rotting in many European nations (Spain included in a major way), but on a lighter note CRonaldo is still chasing Messi: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/socce...suite-portugal-team-hotel-163208780--sow.html
More stats, as if you needed them: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...-is-better-than-cristiano-ronaldo-this-season
I'm guessing Messi, C.Ronaldo and Casillas will be the shortlist of three attending the FIFA Gala. Leo the winner, of course.