GOAT Debate: Lionel Messi edges out Cristiano Ronaldo in this key stat

What's the story?

As reported by LiveMint, out of the 600 goals scored by Lionel Messi, a staggering 109 has been created by himself using free kicks, solo runs and so on. This is in a proportion of 18.17%, that is 1 in 6 goals! Compared to this, only 87 of Cristiano Ronaldo's 601 goals are self-made, that is 14.48%.

In case you didn't know...

With 5 Ballon d'Ors each, Portuguese hitman Ronaldo and Argentine magician Messi are scripting the greatest football rivalry the world has ever seen, with each outdoing the other in every passing season. The two superhuman footballers of this era make goalscoring look like childs play, scoring 35+ goals each season and dismantling defences all across Europe in the Champions League. While Ronaldo leads in terms of UEFA Champions League titles (5-4), Messi has accomplised otherworldly feats like sextuples and trebles with Barcelona.

The heart of the matter

Messi has left Ronaldo in his wake this season, smashing in 48 goals and providing 16 assists in all competitions, being the front runner for the European Golden Boot and ending the season as La Liga and the UEFA Champions League's top scorer. Messi has already won the league title with Barcelona, who are set to face Valencia in the Copa del Rey final later in the month. Ernesto Valverde's Barcelona side were, however, disappointingly knocked out by Liverpool in the Champions League semi-finals.

Ronaldo,on the other hand, has taken time adapting to life in the Seria A with Juventus, managing only 25 goals and 8 assists, lying a dismal third in the league's top scorers' standings. He won the Seria A with the Old Lady, but his side were knocked out of both the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Champions League.

As per statistics, Messi creates a staggering 1 out 6 goals he scored as compared to 1 in 7 by Ronaldo. The difference in self-made goals is 22 so far in Messi's favor, although the Argentine's career having been shorter than Ronaldo's. The significant difference in numbers is partly because Messi has honed his direct free-kick skills in recent years, towering over Ronaldo in that aspect of the game. Messi has scored eight free-kick goal this season, while Ronaldo has none.

What's next?

While Barcelona will play their final game of the season against Eibar on Sunday, Juventus will face Atalanta on the same day. With the league titles already secured by Barcelona and Juventus, it remains to be seen if Messi and Ronaldo feature at the weekend.