5 reasons why Lionel Messi is better than Cristiano Ronaldo

#3 Better creativity and tactical flexibility

Lionel Messi is equally prolific as a playmaker

This is no rocket science and Lionel Messi is the outright winner in this area. To sum it all up, Messi is just as deadly on the ball as he is off it. When he isn't scoring goals, the Barca No.10 is busy creating chances and building up plays for his teammates.

Messi has 236 assists in 696 games as opposed to Ronaldo's tally of 191 in 816 goals. That's more of assists in fewer games for the Argentinian, adding up to an average Ronaldo can't even dream to beat.

Messi's innate vision also allows him to be tactically flexible; the 31-year-old is capable of operating as a playmaker, a right-winger or a striker and he would still chip in with about fifty goals per season.

That's pretty much in contrast to Ronaldo, who actually showed his short-comings during season 2017/18 under Zinedine Zidane's tutelage. The Portuguese ace had the toughest time of his career when he struggled to function as a No.9 and had the worst shots to goals ratio in Europe back then.