Pundit explains what 'separates' Cristiano Ronaldo from Lionel Messi after Manchester United superstar's 700th club goal
Football pundit Andy Gray has explained what, according to him, makes Cristiano Ronaldo a better player than rival Lionel Messi. The Manchester United forward recently scored the 700th goal of his club career.
Speaking on beIN Sports (via GiveMeSport), Gray argued that the Portuguese has been among the top goalscorers in three different countries - Spain, England and Italy - and that puts him on a pedestal above Messi.
“See that, for me, is what separates him from Messi. When people say ‘who has been the best player in the world?’
“I think that separates him from Messi, in my opinion, that he’s done it [at Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus].
“Three different countries, three different types of football, three different challenges – and he’s risen to every one of them, on a personal level,” Gray said.
Ronaldo has played for three of the biggest European clubs in his career in Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus.
He scored 450 goals in 438 appearances across competitions for the La Liga giants, while for United, he has so far scored 144 goals in 340 matches. 101 of his 700 goals came for Juventus, while he scored five for Sporting Lisbon.
700 - Cristiano Ronaldo has scored the 700th club goal of his career, 20 years and 2 days after his first goal.
5 - Sporting CP
118 - Man Utd (1st spell)
450 - Real Madrid
101 - Juventus
26 - Man Utd (2nd spell)
Icon. https://t.co/cGKEjVdOLD
The Argentine, on the other hand, has scored 691 club goals so far in just 825 appearances across competitions. 672 of those goals have come for Barcelona and 19 for his current side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
Cristiano Ronaldo endures tough start to 2022/23 season, while Lionel Messi starts on a high
Cristiano Ronaldo hasn't enjoyed the best of starts to the 2022/23 season, and has been relegated to the bench by Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag. He has so far started just one Premier League match this season and has mainly been used in the Europa League.
The veteran striker has scored two goals in 10 appearances this season across competitions. His 700th club goal came in United's recent 2-1 win over Everton in the league, where Ronaldo came on for an injured Anthony Martial in the first half.
Cristiano Ronaldo's game by numbers vs. Everton:
100% take-on success
34 touches
8 duels contested
6 duels won
3 shots
3 touches in opp. box
3 aerial duels won
2 shots on target
1 goal
700 not out. 😀 https://t.co/Ni9r7FrD8f
The former Barcelona talisman, on the contrary, has been brilliant in the ongoing season. He has already scored eight and assisted as many goals this term for PSG, and looks set to add many more to his tally.