Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo: Who had a better World Cup 2022 group stage?

The FIFA World Cup Round of 16 is ongoing and teams are preparing to mark their spot in the next round. Many teams have qualified as expected like Brazil, Argentina and Portugal. Some teams have also surprised with their qualification such as Japan, South Korea and Morocco. Other teams have also surprised fans with their elimination like Belgium and Germany. 

The FIFA World Cup 2022 is also seen as the last one for Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Both Argentina and Portugal have managed to qualify for the next round by topping their group. Argentina will face Australia and Poland will go against Switzerland in the Round of 16 stage of the World Cup.

Let’s look at stats of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in FIFA World Cup 2022 group stages:

Wins so far

Lionel Messi - 2 

Cristiano Ronaldo - 2

Both of their countries registered the same number of wins and finished on top of their respective group. Messi and Argentina, after losing the first match against Saudi Arabia, won their last two group-stage matches. They won 2-0 against both Mexico and Poland which ensured their place in the Round OF 16.

Ronaldo and his national side Portugal sealed qualification last 16 with a game in hand, which they eventually lost to South Korea. They beat Ghana 3-2 in their group opener. Roberto Santos' side followed it with a win against the South American side, Uruguay with 2-0 resulting in their advancement to the next round.

Goals

Lionel Messi - 2

Cristiano Ronaldo - 1

Messi is ahead of Ronaldo in the number of goals scored. The Argentina talisman scored his first goal against Saudi Arabia via a penalty. They eventually lost that match. He fired his second goal, a long-distance one, against Mexico and won the match. His tally would have been three had it not been for the penalty miss against Poland.

Ronaldo has only scored one goal so far which came from the penalty spot against Ghana in their first match which they won. It seemed like he had scored his second goal in the match against Uruguay, but it was ruled that there was no contact and thus granted to Fellow teammate Bruno Fernandes.

Assists

Lionel Messi - 1

Cristiano Ronaldo - 0

Ronaldo has zero assists in his three group-stage matches. While Messi provided one assist in the match against Mexico. La Pulga provided the assist to Enzo Fernandez to seal Argentina's 2-0 victory over Mexico. 

Key Passes

Lionel Messi - 9

Cristiano Ronaldo - 3

Messi has delivered more key passes than Ronaldo. He has given nine key passes while Ronaldo has given three only. Messi also has nine crosses of which two were successful while Ronaldo has one cross, and it was successful.

Shot Conversion Rate

Lionel Messi - 16.67%

Cristiano Ronaldo - 20%

Ronaldo has a better conversion rate than Messi in this World Cup. The Portuguese has also taken less shots than Messi. Ronaldo has five while Messi has 12. 

Dribble Success Rate

Lionel Messi - 57.14%

Ronaldo - 0

Being a dribbler Messi is much ahead of Ronaldo in this stat. Messi has 14 dribbles with a success rate of around 57%, while Ronaldo has two dribbles both of which were unsuccessful.

Defence (Tackles and Interceptions)

Lionel Messi - 2 Tackles

Cristiano Ronaldo - 0 Tackles

Ronaldo has zero tackles and interceptions in the World Cup so far. Messi, on the other hand, has two tackles to his name and zero interceptions. They both are not yet booked but Messi has four fouls committed and Ronaldo has two fouls to his name.