Inter Miami is currently contesting the CONCACAF Champions League RO16 against Nashville. In a shocking turn of events, the Herons are trailing by two goals against the home side. However, star player Lionel Messi once again stepped up and finally broke his side’s deadlock to make it 2-1. Interestingly, his rallying efforts to inspire a comeback somehow led him to surpass his arch-rival, Cristiano Ronaldo‘s goal feat.

Thanks to his 52-minute strike set up by Luis Suarez, La Pulga has become the fastest player to reach 825 goals in soccer history. The Argentinian superstar has achieved this feat in a remarkable 1051 matches. On the other hand, Ronaldo reached the 825-goal milestone in 1151 matches. With a difference of 100 matches, Messi successfully overtook the face of Al Nassr. Notably, today’s goal was quite a stunner, as he neatly curled the ball to the left side, leaving the goalie with no chance whatsoever to save it. Interestingly, the 2024 season has kicked off on a high note.

This was Lionel Messi’s 4th goal of the season, after a brace against Orlando City, where Martino’s side registered a 5-0 victory. The 36-year-old also has an assist in his name. On the other hand, Ronaldo is leading the goalscoring charts in Saudi Arabia. Currently, the top scorer of the Roshn Saudi League with a tally of 22 goals, the 39-year-old has netted 28 goals and 11 assists in 31 games across all competitions.

While the Portuguese superstar is just months away from claiming the league’s Golden Boot, the journey has just started for Lionel Messi. Interestingly, this isn’t the only feat where the Inter Miami star eclipsed CR7 recently.

Lionel Messi dethroned Cristiano Ronaldo for another record!

Earlier, on February 17th, Cristiano Ronaldo netted his 714th non-penalty goal in Al Nassr’s 2-1 victory over Al Fateh in the Saudi league. Just 4 days later, he added another goal against Al Feiha in the AFC Champions League. This put Ronaldo ahead of Messi in terms of non-penalty goals. However

USA Today via Reuters

In the Florida derby between Orlando and Inter Miami, the 2022 World Champion scored twice, bringing his tally of non-penalty goals to 716, surpassing CR7’s 715. Additionally, Messi’s 2nd goal in the same match marked the 500th league goal of his career. He achieved it in 587 matches, fewer when compared to Ronaldo, who achieved it after joining Al Nassr.

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Such records are a testament to the fact that even as they reach beyond their prime, both Messi and Ronaldo continue to push each other as rivals, keeping the rivalry alive.