This is the longest player to player football rivalry in the history of football as it has been ongoing for over a decade, both players have been consistent in remaining at a very high level hence making it so difficult for football pundits to determine the better player among the two. Most football coaches often said that both of them are in the league of their own and that except they both retire the world of football can not move on as other football starts who have risen after them have really found it hard to compete with any of the two players at their individual levels.
Lets digress a bit and look at Neymar Jnr and Eden Hazard if it was in the past that is before Messi and Ronaldo they would have been sharing the world best award between each other because all you need to win it as at then is to show a consistent high level of football in a season and that does not necessarily have to include goal scoring then the award is yours. But Messi and CR7 have now greatly increased the level at which footballers are considered great where you have to score a breath taken goal and also contribute to your team with high level of assist also.
Back in the days of Ronaldinho, Zinedine Zidane and their likes who have won this awards once you are a good goal assist provider such as Ozil as of today or you are a good goal scorer such as Harry Kane and you just have silverware added to it then you have what it takes win the best footballer in the world award.
Lets take a look at both Messi and Christiano Ronaldo game stats this season. Christiano Ronaldo had a deep in form earlier this season even until the half of the Spanish Laliga season his goals ratio were not impressive at all scoring 3 goals in the league till the end of December and having 2 goals in 10 games of the Spanish Laliga in which the player have been reported of wanting to force a move away from the club as the player saw the promise of a contract extension declined due to his dip form though a point to note is that in 6 champions league game as at December 2017 he had 9 goals but as we all know that when it concerns messi and Ronaldo all it takes for them to retain their world dominance is to have few games where they are in great form. It would be surprising to know that ever since January 2018 Ronaldo has scored 17 goals in 12 games for Real Madrid thereby reestablishing himself as their match winner that he has always been over the years with his latest heroics of 4 goal thriller scored against Girona yesterday.
Lionel Messi on the other hand has been in the form of his life from the beginning of the season even when everyone taught that it was over for both Barcelona and Messi as Neymar left the Catalan Giant in a controversial manner and also coupled by Luiz Suarez dip in form at the beginning of the season, Messi did not allow all that is happening around him to affect his game and he has since then helped Barcelona to the stage in which they are this season though his goal returns were not as much as previous years as he is much concerned with creating goals for his fellow team mates had Luiz Suarez not been wasteful i the final third he would have scored a lot of goals this season but still the Argentine has been consistent in terms of goals and always delivering goals when ever he is called upon not to mention some wonderful free kick he has scored this season as he remained the only Player in Europe who has scored the highest number of free kicks this season. He also shows the same high level of football against Chelsea in both Legs of the Champions League as he utilize the only three chances he had to hit a shot at the goal keeper to score beautiful goals though he played the ball from a very tight corner he still managed to poach the ball into the net behind the goal Keeper and same thing occurred when he scored a wonderful goal from outside the box in Laliga yesterday against Athletic Club.
This high level of consistency is what has really made the rivalry of Christiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi be an interesting one and one of a kind in the history of football up till date.