4. Leo Messi is more of a team player :
Whilst Messi always has been grabbing the attention for his performances, Be it the Champions League semi-finals of 14/15 against Bayern Munich, the same cannot be said of Ronaldo. For Messi, many remarks were made about how selfless he is in a trio of world class players.
He had laid on key passes to Neymar in the second leg at the Allianz Arena and caused some people to speculate that we might be watching the best attacking trio in the history of the beautiful game. Right through his career, though he has showcased superb scoring stats, Messi has never been attributed the tag of being a selfish player.
In a contrast it is almost accepted that Ronaldo wants to be the main man. He might look frustrated in a match, until he score at least once or more. His passion to succeed is incomparable at times. A fellow attacker once beat him to a tap in to an open goal and rather than celebrating with his team-mates, the Portugal international was rather busy throwing a tantrum.
Messi has been unhappy at being played out of position from time to time, or by the team selection by Enrique, yet considering his talents, he has done a fantastic job of being recognized as a team player.
The rest of the Catalan side and the club’s fan base clearly love him, with the . Yet take a look once again across Spain to Real Madrid and Ronaldo shows that fans can turn against their star player at times.
3. More individual honours :
Ronaldo finally bowed down to him once again, when Messi won the Ballon d’Or this time and made it clear to the footballing fans around the world, what the award means to the top guys. In 2013, the former Manchester United man broke the stranglehold that Messi had kept on the trophy for quite some time, but there is still a long way to go in terms of matching him in terms of individual awards.
Messi is surely the better decorated player on the world stage at the moment and for many of his four Ballon d’Or winners, it was just a one man race, unlike how Ronaldo merely edged past the rest of the competition.
The two men also seem to have an unwritten rule where one will win the European Golden Boot for most goals in the domestic League. It is the one award where Messi had some catching up to do, as Ronaldo had earned the award back in 2008 with the Red Devils.
Since that time, it was Messi who was victorious in 2010, 2012 and 2013 and looked to be asserting his dominance in yet another category. Ronaldo is not the one to go down without a fight, however, as has now also lifted the award thrice too, providing a fascinating storyline each time.
Whilst neither men will acknowledge their hunger for the award, Both very well know exactly what is at stake.
