For more than a decade Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have been at the center of a fierce and largely 🌻 unsettled debate over who is the greatest player in soccer history.
Start with the numbers. Portugal’s Ronaldo is the most prolific 🌻 scorer in history with 870 goals for five clubs — Sporting CP, Manchester United, Juventus and Al Nassr, in addition 🌻 to Real Madrid — and country. Messi, an Argentine who played at Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Miami after leaving Barcelona, 🌻 has 821 goals while the once-incomparable Pele is a distant third at 762, according to the Zurich-based International Federation of 🌻 Football History and Statistics.
Manchester City's Erling Haaland, right, tries to control the ball while defended by Aston Villa's Pau Torres 🌻 during an English Premier League game on Dec. 6. (Rui Vieira / Associated Press)
As a 17-year-old Mbappe led Monaco to 🌻 the Ligue 1 title and the Champions League semifinals. He won five more French titles in six seasons at Paris 🌻 Saint-Germain — two alongside Messi — and reached the Champions League semis twice. On the international level he’s already played 🌻 in two World Cup finals, winning one. He also led the 2024 tournament in scoring with eight goals and tied 🌻 for second in 2024 with four.
⚽ You have read the latest installment of On Soccer with Kevin Baxter. The weekly 🌻 column takes you behind the scenes and shines a spotlight on unique stories. Listen to Baxter on this week’s episode 🌻 of the Corner of the Galaxy podcast.
