"He had more presence in the game" - Former La Liga star picks favorite between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo

Former Villarreal midfielder Marcos Senna was asked to pick between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He suggested that the Argentine superstar's passing ability gave him the ability to impact the game more, thus backing the 37-year-old.

He said (via Portuguese outlet A Bola):

"When I was asked before if I preferred Messi or Cristiano, I always chose Messi because of the pace. He had more presence in the game. More diversity of passes and different things."

In his 11 seasons with the La Liga side, Senna faced off multiple times against both Messi and Ronaldo. He did not have particularly memorable times against either superstar.

Senna faced the Inter Miami icon 10 times in his career, winning twice while losing six times. Meanwhile, in his seven face-offs against Ronaldo, he failed to win even once, collecting three losses and four draws.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo had a massive rivalry in Spain in the 2010s facing off for arch-rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively. The Argentine winger had great success, lifting La Liga 10 times and the Champions League four times, among other honors. Meanwhile, the Portuguese forward won the league twice and the Champions League four times with Los Blancos.

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Barcelona star joins Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo among top performers in UCL goals per game stat

Lewandowski's performances have put him alongside the great duo.

Robert Lewandowski scored a brace in Barcelona's 5-0 thrashing of Young Boys in the UEFA Champions League on October 1. He now has the best goals-to-game ratio in the history of the Champions League (minimum 50 goals scored). His tally of 0.79 puts him on par with Lionel Messi and slightly ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo (0.77).

The Polish superstar has been a goalscoring machine throughout his career. In the UCL, he has bagged consistently for Bayern Munich and now Barcelona. He has made 122 appearances in the competition, bagging 96 goals and 26 assists. His only triumph in the competition came with the Bavarian giants in 2020.

Lionel Messi, meanwhile, played a vital role in helping Barcelona win the tournament four times in his tenure. However, he was unable to bring a title home to Paris Saint-Germain in his two-year stint with the French side. He has made 163 appearances, scoring 129 times and setting up 45 more.

Cristiano Ronaldo has cemented his legacy as one of the best performers in the tournament, winning it five times. He is the only player to score in the finals on three separate occasions and boasts a tally of 140 goals and 48 assists in 183 games. He is the all-time top scorer in the Champions League.