Lionel Messi Has Now Scored More Non-Penalty Goals Than Cristiano Ronaldo After Masterclass Vs Sociedad
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Lionel Messi's double against Real Sociedad means he's now officially scored more non-penalty goals in his career than Cristiano Ronaldo.
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The Argentine sensation put on a masterclass for Barcelona on Sunday night as they ran out rampant 6-1 winners.
Messi managed to get on the scoresheet twice and take his non-penalty goal tally up to 636 - one ahead of Ronaldo's 635.
He has also achieved that feat in 144 fewer games than Juventus forward Ronaldo, who needed 1054 appearances according to MessiVsRonaldo.com.
Messi's rate is also a goal every 117 minutes compared to 135 for Ronaldo.
Ronaldo is ahead in non-penalty goals in the Champions League and at international level.
'CR7' is known for his performances in Europe's elite competition and his non-penalty goals are 116 compared to Messi's 104.
Both players are operating at a completely different level to the competition and have scored goals for fun for years.
Messi is having an incredible 2021 despite rumours about his Barcelona future continuing to spread.
The 33-year-old has scored 15 goals and registered seven assists in 12 games this calendar year and doesn't look like slowing down.
Victory over Sociedad has seen the Blaugrana leapfrog Real Madrid into second place and they sit four points behind league leaders Atletico Madrid.
14 - Lionel Messi has either scored (18) or assisted (8) in each of his last 14 league games, the fourth time he has provided a goal involvement in 14+ consecutive LaLiga appearances after a run of 21 ending in 2013, a run of 18 ending in 2011 and a run of 16 ending in 2019. Tidy pic.twitter.com/3GQmQLuiLh
- OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 22, 2021
Manager Ronald Koeman praised his side for their biggest victory of the season and has seen much improvement.
"We played a great game, even though it was difficult for us to score the first goal," he stated per Marca.
"At 2-0 we dominated and we had a lot of effectiveness in attack.
"They have given me [Koeman turned 58 on Sunday] a great birthday present, and also to Alba and Griezmann [who turned 32 and 30 respectively this weekend].
"But I am not convinced we are not going to lose. There are very difficult games to come. The best we can do is to continue like this and today is important in order to win something."
Who do you think will go down as the greater goalscorer, Messi or Ronaldo?
Featured Image Credit: PA Images
Topics: Football, Barcelona, Lionel Messi, Juventus, Cristiano Ronaldo
