*Note: I have to make this website because some fanboys are hopelessly furious. They deleted all the following information from Wikipedia's Messi-CR7 rivalry page. Meanwhile, I believe the following information is relavant to the debate so why not collectively publish it apart from just statistics? Why hide it from that rivalry page?
THIS SITE IS NO LONGER UPDATED AS I MOVED TO THE NEW SITE:
Football legends/experts have their says
2012: I am more worried about being a good person than being the best football player in the world. When all this is over, what are you left with? When I retire, I hope I am remembered for being a decent guy. I like to score goals but I also like to have friends among the people I have played with.
2018: I don't compete with Cristiano. It's not an objective to be the best in history. The fact that these things are spoken of about me, well, that's that. I never set out to be the best, second best, third or fourth. I compete to improve myself year after year, to surpass what I have done before. The more trophies I've won at the end of the season, the better, and obviously with the national team, which is something I still don't have.
2018: I don't consider myself the best, I think I am just another player. On the field, we are all the same when the game begins.
Some youtube videos about Messi: Why Messi is Alien, 2018, Messi top 100 goals: 2004-2018, Lionel Messi - Ray Hudson Edition, 2018, Lionel Messi - A God Amongst Men HD, 2016, Why is Messi The Greatest Ever !?, How defenders stop Messi
Fans kneeling down in front of the King of football, kissing his left foot, etc: 2016, 2017, 2017
2012: I am better than Messi at the moment
2015: In my mind I am always the best. I don't care what people are thinking. In my mind I am always the best, not this year, every year. In my mind I am better than Messi.
2015 (said when he won 4th Golden Shoe which doubled Messi's number . Also, in 2015, Messi won his 5th Golden Ball while CR7 had only 3): I really love this award [European Golden Shoe]. It is the best award out there for me. Others can pick you as the best player, but an attacker's job is to make goals and I love that.
2017: (said when he won 5th Golden Ball which equals Messi ) People have the right to prefer Neymar or Messi. But I insist: There is no one more complete than me. You will go and say that I have a big head, but when you're at the top, it's normal that you're criticised. ... I am the best player in history, in both good and bad times.
2017: I'm the best player in the history of football, I don't see anyone who is better than me, no player has achieved things that I have not done myself and I have done many things that others cannot do. There is not a more complete player than me.
2018: I always believe and say that I am the best, whatever they say, and then I show it in the field. We are in the fight year after year
Some youtube videos about CR7: CR7 is the best, 2017 , Cristiano Ronaldo's most epic shows, 2017, CR7's best performance, 2018, What defines the power of CR7?, 2018, CR7 is the King of Football in this aspect, 2014
Who is the King of El Clasico - Messi and CR7 head-to-head match statistics.
Detailed Stats, Messi vs Ronaldo
Here is A funny video of CR7 and Messi's fails
Videos comparing Messi and Ronaldo: 2017, Up-to-2018, 10 main differences between Messi and CR7
Here are some Youtube channels for your reference who is better: Channel 1, Channel 2 , Channel 3
*Some comments on La Liga vs Champion league
- Zidane, said this when he was coach of Real Madrid:
2018: It's more difficult. I've always said that: it's more difficult [to win La Liga than the Champion League]
- Julen Lopetegui, coach of RM from July 2018:
2018: The League is the competition that tells you how good a team really is.
Football commentators in the matches between Messi and CR7
- Comments on Messi's goals in all matches vs Real Madrid, before and after CR7 join Real Madrid, 2005-2018: Watch here and More
Some comments in the matches between Messi and CR7:
2011 - Wonderful wonderful. How good is he. He is just briliant, best player in the world.
2017 - He [Messi] is the best, the best there is, the best that ever has been and possibly the best that ever will be.
2018 - Lionel Messi, and again, again, and again, the greatest player in the history of world football.
- Comments on CR7's goals in all matches vs Barcelona since CR7 joined RM, 2010-2017: Watch here
Sorry, I could not find any comments saying that he[CR7] is the best :(.
CR7's (ex-)teammates, (ex-)coaches
- Florentino Pérez, President of Real Madrid
2018: He [CR7] is the best ever [at Real Madrid] after [Alfredo] Di Stefano and this will always be his home.
[So CR7 is not even the best at Real Madrid]
- Massimiliano Allegri, Italian, Juventus manager
2017 (said this when CR7 was at Real Madrid): Cristiano? For me Messi and Neymar are the two best players in the world.
2018 (said this to welcome CR7 to join Juventus in Jul 2018): I think in the last two years, Ronaldo is the best striker in the world.
2018: It’s going to be a pleasure to coach Ronaldo. He is the best player in the world together with Messi.
- José Mourinho, Portuguese, ex-coach of CR7 at Real Madrid
2008 (said this when he was not CR7 coach): Ronaldo is a good player but he's certainly not the best. He deserved the Ballon d'Or because his team won the Champions League and Premier League, he played and he scored. But for me, Ibrahimovic is better. When I think about how a player should be what comes to mind is players like Kaka, Ibrahimovic and Lionel Messi, who is a phenomenon and in two or three years will win the Ballon d'Or.
2012 (said when he was Real Madrid manager and of course CR7 coach): If Lionel Messi is the best on the planet, Cristiano Ronaldo is the best in the universe.
2016 (said this when he no longer coached CR7): For me the top three players in history are Messi, Pele and Maradona.
2016: In 5 years time Messi will be 34, and we will all be crying.
2018: Ronaldo Nazario [Brazilian Ronaldo R9], the best Ronaldo ever! I never saw the same, I never saw the same.
- Carlos Queiroz , Portuguese, ex-coach of CR7 at Portugal national team and MU
2018: Messi shouldn’t be allowed to play by FIFA until it’s proven that he’s actually human.
2018: Cristiano Ronaldo is the best player in the world but Messi is an extraordinary player, he's out of this world.
- Giorgio Chiellini, Italian, CR7 teammate at Juventus since July 2018
2016: Knowing your opponent is fundamental. Because then you can know their characteristics better. With Cristiano Ronaldo you mark him trying to not let him inside on the right. With Messi… you cross yourself and pray!
2017: [What’s it like to defend against Lionel Messi? ] When you try to anticipate his moves you’re dead. Because he reads things so fast that you can’t touch him. The only way is to limit him is with teamwork. Even the best defender in the world, if he thinks he handle it, he has no hope against Messi.
- Gareth Bale, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid
2013 [said this when he joined Real madrid]: Cristiano Ronaldo is for me the best player in the world.
2018 [comment on CR7 leaving Real madrid]: Obviously, it's going to be a little different from having such a big player there. It's maybe a bit more relaxed, yes. I suppose there is more of a team, more working as one unit rather than one player.
- Dani Carvajal, Spanish, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid
2015 (said this when CR7 was at Real Madrid): Everyone who plays football knows that it isn't easy to score five goals. This is the best league in the world and Cristiano again proved he is the best player in the world.
2018: (said this when CR7 moved to Juventus, no longer Carvajal teammate): I think Messi and Cristiano are hardy comparable. They are two of the best players in history but they are very different. Messi is a player who generate more football, he has better vision for a pass. The ball is always stuck to his feet and he always finds space. Cristiano is a player who focuses on getting into the area and scoring. He is an annihilator. They are different, but at the same time so good.
- Iker Casillas, Spanish, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid
2010: Barcelona's Lionel Messi Is The World's Best Player.
2015: [Best striker you have ever faced?] Lionel Messi. It has always been Messi.
2017: Regardless of whether you love Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, there's no doubt that competing with a player such as Lionel Messi isn't easy. Cristiano Ronaldo is very different to Messi but, with strength and courage, he's also a world-class player. The thing, when you face Lionel Messi, is to stay organised. He's a very fast player, a livewire. In addition to scoring a lot of goals, he also provides a lot of assists. With Messi, you have to stay focused for the whole game, from the first to the 90th minute. See more
- Guti, Spanish, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid
2013: I hate to say it but Messi is the best.
2017: [Guti asked Messi to swap shirts twice when he player at Nou Camp and when he played at Santiago Bernabeu. In both matches. CR7's ex-teammate seems to adore Messi too much.]
- Paul Scholes, English, CR7 teammate at MU
2015: I think about the great players with whom I have shared a pitch: Eric Cantona, Zinedine Zidane, Pirlo, Xavi, Cristiano Ronaldo – and the greatest of them all is Messi.
- Danilo, Brazilian, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid
2017: Messi is a top player. Of course I would play with him, he is the best.
2017: [Talk about his teammates' talents] I always tell my friends there are three players I've seen do otherworldly things in training: Neymar, Isco and Marcelo. When asked about how Ronaldo fit in with those three, Danilo replied: "Oh... Cristiano is a player that wants to score goals, he's a numbers, results guy, it's a little bit different."
- James Rodríguez, Colombian, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid
2014: Cristiano is the best player in the world for me. He's a goalscoring machine and a true superstar. What stands out most, however, is that he is a great person as well.
2015: Messi is in ANOTHER WORLD. He is a unique player, and you cannot talk about a James versus Messi duel, because that would be unfair to him.
- Raúl (footballer), CR7 teammate at MU
2015: I was lucky enough to play with Zidane, Ronaldo, Figo, Cristiano... but Messi is different; he makes everything look so easy, so effortless – even the impossible.
- Wayne Rooney, English, CR7 teammate at MU
2012: Messi or C.Ronaldo? - Messi. In my eyes, Messi is the best ever.
2014: "Which current footballer do you most like watching?" Without any hesitation, Rooney responded by saying: "Lionel Messi, because I think he's the best. He's incredible."
2018: [who's the better player between Ronaldo and Messi?] "Messi. I think I've said this before". Messi is, in my eyes, the greatest ever.
- Ryan Giggs, Spanish, CR7 teammate at MU
2013: They [Barcelona] had Lionel Messi, the best I’ve seen.
2017: Well obviously I played with Cristiano so I'm going to go with Cristiano. But they're both two great players. We're living in an era where you're seeing true legends at their bext going head-to-head each season.
2018: He [CR7] is obsessed at being better than Messi. I did it in England, I did it in Spain, I'm going to do it in Italy. I did it with Portugal. So maybe that will be his argument when [he thinks about] 'Am I better than Messi'?
2018: [on CR7 winning best goal of the season by UEFA] Gareth Bale’s goal wasn’t one of the best goals of last season, it was the best. I can’t actually believe they bothered to nominate any others, it was the winner, it’s as simple as that. [CR7's goal was not the best!]
- Rio Ferdinand, English, CR7 teammate at MU
2015: [CR7 or Messi?] - It is too hard....I mean.... I played with Ronaldo so I always favor him.
2015: Ronaldo is like a driven, well-oiled machine, who has made himself that superstar. Messi seems like he's more natural. Its just been given to him. Someone looked down and said 'You're the man'. And he went out there and did it, and he's just a beautiful footballer. There's two different players, but the respect for both of them is huge.
2018: Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are the best players. But the difference between both of them is that Cristiano goes out there and his mindset is ‘give me the ball in the areas I can score a goal’. He’s a goalscorer. He’s not bothered about being on the halfway line and getting into the rhythm of the game, he wants to be at the cutting, knife-edge of the game. Messi, you sometimes see him in the defensive midfield position. Picking up the ball, playing one-twos. Just playing with the opposition, he’s biding his time. He’s involved in the rhythm of the game constantly and that’s the difference. And then the guy’s a magician. The size of him, he shouldn’t be doing what he’s doing really. If you are going to build a player to come out of a machine you’re not going to throw Messi out there. When you play against him he doesn’t allow you to get near him and touch him. I played in two Champions League finals against him and I don’t think I got a finger on him. I don’t think Vidic did either. When you get near him he plays one touch.
2018: I feel blessed that I was in this stadium to watch him [Messi]. I'll tell my kids about him tomorrow on the school run. This guy, what he does on a football pitch is just ridiculous. It’s like he’s got a remote control in his hand, assesses the situation, and says ‘yeah, right, let me just plot the location and I’ll put the ball exactly where I want to put it, on a sixpence. His weight of pass, his decision making is unrivalled. When he gets in to finish, he’s as cool as you like.
- Jaime Seoane, Real Madrid Castilla central midfielder
2018: Although I'm in Real Madrid, Messi is the best, he does things I can not explain in the words.
- Fabio Capello - Italian, former manager of Real Madrid - but not ex-coach of CR7
2005: In my entire life I have never seen a player of such quality and personality at such a young age, particularly wearing the 'heavy' shirt of one of the world's great clubs.—Fabio Capello praises the 18-year-old Messi following the Joan Gamper trophy in August 2005.
2014: Cristiano is a powerful player, with very good technique, but he does not possess the pure technical skill of Messi. ...I could see that he [Messi] could do things that didn't occur to other players.
2016: Cristiano Ronaldo is a great goal scorer but he doesn't have the brilliance of Lionel Messi. Messi at the age of 17 or 18 was a genius, Cristiano was a good player who improved through hard work and effort and has become an excellent forward. The Real Madrid No. 7 is not just a great player but an excellent one however he doesn't have that ability to mesmerize or pull off moves that are unimaginable [like Messi]. That for me is the difference.
CR7 is my favourite for the year (Ballon D'or 2016). He was instrumental in Portugal winning Euro 2016 and Madrid winning the Champions League ... He'd be the worthy winner. However when we talk about genius players then that's a totally different debate.
2017: It’s amazing to be able to see what he (Messi) does. He threw the team behind him because he’s a genius. All the rest are great players. Ronaldo’s a goal scorer, really good in the area, but [in the Clasico] a genius [Messi] got a positive result for his side. In the Clasico I saw Messi do things that I have never seen before.
- Julen Lopetegui, Spanish, coach of RM from 2018, not coach of CR7 as he moves to Juventus this year
2016: I’ve never met a player like Leo Messi. I don’t like to compare eras. I’ve never seen and nor do I think I will ever see someone with Messi’s consistency.
2017: Messi is the best player in history.
2018: It's extremely unlikely that we'll see another player like him [Messi]. He's made the difference in so many ways over a continuous period of time and it's a joy to watch him play.
2018: CR7 comment on the move to Juventus "Juventus is one of the best teams in the world. It was a long-time decision I made. An easy decision for the size of the club and a very important step for my career.” => Then a Real Madrid fan @AlanazoRM tweeted: “This is how he pays us back after we had to lie for 9 years saying he was better than Messi.”
2018: "Rio Ferdinand would tell us stories about how Cristiano Ronaldo would stand in front of the mirror naked, running his hand through his hair, and say, 'Wow. I'm so beautiful!'," Crouch said in his new book, as per the Daily Mail . "The other United players would try to wind him up. 'Whatever. Leo Messi is a better player than you.' "And he would shrug his shoulders and smile again. 'Ah yes. But Messi does not look like this...'"
- Sergio Ramos, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid for 9 years
2018: [comments on top 3 of FIFA Best award this year: CR7, Modric and Salah]: Maybe there are players with more marketing, with a bigger name but Modric deserves that award.
2018: Messi is the Lord and Master of Wembley
2018: Messi has changed the history of Barcelona...In the eyes of the majority, he is the best player of the last decade, and maybe of history. He became a great passer; he invented the false nine; he has become excellent at free kicks and now he is a great captain, he really has it all.
- Spainish Sport Press: Messi - THE KING
- Isco, CR7 teammate at Real Madrid
2013: Messi is the best in the world.
(Ex-)teammates of both Messi and CR7
- Gerard Piqué, Spanish, MU and Barcelona
2016: Ronaldo Is The Best Of The Humans But Messi Isn't Human
- Henrik Larsson, Swedish, MU and Barcelona
2018: It’s just a pleasure as Rio was saying to be here tonight and witness it [Messi magic] live . It was fantastic.
2013: Cristiano is unlucky to be playing at the same time as Messi. Ronaldo is a very good player, but Messi is even better. He is from out of this world. He's so good that it's almost incredible. When you see him with the ball at his feet it's hard to believe that anybody else could do the same. He's a fantastic player to see.
- Javier Saviola, Argentine, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Argentina national team
2016: I love how Messi plays football. If I had to choose a favourite player, I would definitely choose him. Cristiano Ronaldo is a machine, physically powerful. Messi is more skilful and he brings more of a spectacle when he comes onto the pitch.
- Ángel Di María, Argentine, Real Madrid and Argentina national team
2018: Cristiano is an excellent player. Being around at the same time as Messi has made it much more difficult for him. There are no words to describe Leo. He will always surprise you. One year on and Messi is the best, another year goes by and he's still the best; he's a player from another planet – an extraterrestrial.
2018: Messi is always the best, he’s the best every year. Cristiano Ronaldo’s a special player, but Messi’s from another planet. There are no words to describe Messi, he always surprises you.
- Carlos Tevez, Argentine, MU and Argentina national team
2018: Cristiano is totally different to Messi. When Leo was starting out, he didn't touch a gym. But Cristiano was there in the morning, afternoon and evening, all the time. Cristiano had to work and prepare himself to be the best, while, for Leo, it comes naturally. Those are the greatest differences that I see between the two best players on the planet. Asked to pick who he feels is the better player between them, Tevez chose the FC Barcelona man. Messi plays another sport. For Messi to score three goals (in any given game) is normal.
- Ezequiel Garay, Argentine, Real Madrid and Argentina national team
2011: Asked who he rated as superior [CR7 or Messi], Garay said: "When people ask me who is the best player ever, I say Leo. From the first time I saw him with Argentina U-15 to this day he continues to amaze me. He has no limit.
- Gabriel Heinze, Argentine, Real Madrid and Argentina national team
2017: Cristiano Ronaldo has drive and enviable self-discipline. He's an obsessive. As long as he has not reached the goal he has put in his head, he does not stop trying. However, Leo is inexplicable. Footballistically, he does not come from this planet. And as a person, he leads such a quiet life that is admirable.
- Fernando Gago, Argentine, Real Madrid and Argentina national team
2008: For me he [CR7] is not number one. For me, the best in the world is Messi because of the way he plays, moves with the ball and changes matches. Messi has incredible ability and I love the way that he plays.
- Gonzalo Higuaín, Argentine, Real Madrid and Argentina national team
2015: He [CR7] has a lot of ego. If you don't say he's the best, he's not your friend. Cristiano thinks he's the best but he's over-rated. I've shared a dressing room with Messi and one is nothing like the other.
2017: [the Bianconeri striker was asked who he preferred playing with between Messi and Ronaldo, Marca] It's not difficult, it's easy to answer. They are both beasts and have each developed their own qualities and characteristics, so play with the one that makes you feel better in your own game.