The summer transfer window was like something we’ve never seen before with the standout two best players of the last decade or more both moving clubs. It was headlines galore, there was partying in the streets and shirt sales that reached record breaking numbers.
Neither player has had the start to their next chapter they perhaps anticipated though with either a slow start or poor team performances detracting from their games. As a result, we’re asking did Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi make the best transfer decision?
How did the two transfers come about?
Before we get into the current situation, let’s just have a quick recap of how both transfers materialised. Messi, who is one of the shortest players in the game, helped to almost reinvent football at Barcelona after breaking through back in 2004. The club coffers have run dry, aspirations have declined and, as a result, Messi wanted out. He walked from Barca – via an emotional and heart wrenching press conference- on a free transfer and quickly signed on the dotted line with PSG.
Ronaldo’s story is a little different. The great player we love and appreciate today was made in the red half of Manchester after they signed him from Sporting. After winning it all with the Red Devil’s he opted to join Real Madrid and then Juventus. Whilst trophies weren’t absent in Italy it became clear Mr CR7 had bigger plans in his mind. Rumours of a move to Manchester City gathered speed with a deal looking close. United couldn’t let it happened and swooped for a romantic homecoming.
How has Messi started life in France?
In truth, Messi has made an okay start to life in Paris but, probably because of what was expected of him, he’s actually underwhelmed a little. To date, he’s made five Ligue 1 appearances totalling 325 minutes of football but has yet to provide a goal contribution; he’s very much in the shade of Kylian Mbappe who has five goals and four assists in 11 games.
It’s a different story in the Champions League though. As fate had it written Messi would face his old boss, Man City manager Pep Guardiola, as two giants of European football locked horns. Who would deliver a hammer blow from 18 yards to the top corner? Messi, of course. It was his first goal for PSG and he now has three in three in the Champions League. His average SofaScore rating comes in at 7.10 in the league and 7.70 in Europe. Respectable if not mind blowing.
What about Ronaldo’s return?
Ronaldo is arguably one of the best players ever and one of the best center forwards in the game. If Karem Abdul-Jabbar leads the list for best NBA center ever (find out more here: https://edge.twinspires.com/nba/the-best-centers-in-nba-history/), Ronaldo is up there as one of the best soccer centers, alongside Pelé.
When Ronaldo signed on the dotted line to return to Old Trafford it’s fair to say the expectations of the club went up a notch. He instantly set about justifying the hype with a brace in his opening match against Newcastle.
That was followed up with another strike as United beat West Ham. What followed was a four game dry spell as the team struggled for results in the league. Ronaldo was seen by some as the problem; a sumptuous volley and assist against Tottenham silenced any critics.
On top of his goal involvements reading as four goals and one assist in seven league outings, Ronaldo has also excelled in Europe. His four appearances have served up a total of five goals with three of those being last minute goals to give his team seven points. He really is the ultimate clutch player and, in many ways, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer owes CR7 his job. Using the same comparables as Messi, Ronaldo has game rankings of 7.23 in the league and 7.90 in European games.
The verdict
It might only be early days but right now not even the most devout Lionel Messi fan could argue he’s outshining Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese is scoring goals of all kinds, winning points and writing headlines week after week. If the season continues in this vein it could settle the GOAT debate once and for all.
