Who was better at 33? In the season each was 33 years old, Messi scored 38 goals and Ronaldo 28. A like-for-like comparison with assists, appearances and goals per game.
Messi and Ronaldo are two years apart, so comparing them by calendar year flatters whoever happened to be in his prime. This page lines them up at the same age instead. At 33, Messi was ahead, 38 goals to 28.
| Metric | Lionel Messi | Cristiano Ronaldo |
|---|---|---|
| Club | FC Barcelona | Juventus |
| Age that season | 33 | 33 |
| Goals | 38 | 28 |
| Assists | 14 | 10 |
| Goal contributions | 52 | 38 |
| Appearances | 47 | 43 |
| Goals per game | 0.81 | 0.65 |
| International goals | 1 | 6 |
| Ballon d'Or | Yes | No |
Counting every season up to and including age 33, Messi had 672 goals and Ronaldo had 596. Messi was 76 ahead.
The full like-for-like record. "Running total" counts every season up to and including that age.
| Age | Messi goals | Ronaldo goals | Messi running total | Ronaldo running total | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 6 | Messi +3 |
| 19 | 17 | 9 | 26 | 15 | Messi +11 |
| 20 | 16 | 12 | 42 | 27 | Messi +15 |
| 21 | 38 | 23 | 80 | 50 | Messi +30 |
| 22 | 47 | 42 | 127 | 92 | Messi +35 |
| 23 | 53 | 26 | 180 | 118 | Messi +62 |
| 24 | 73 | 33 | 253 | 151 | Messi +102 |
| 25 | 60 | 53 | 313 | 204 | Messi +109 |
| 26 | 41 | 60 | 354 | 264 | Messi +90 |
| 27 | 58 | 55 | 412 | 319 | Messi +93 |
| 28 | 41 | 51 | 453 | 370 | Messi +83 |
| 29 | 54 | 61 | 507 | 431 | Messi +76 |
| 30 | 45 | 51 | 552 | 482 | Messi +70 |
| 31 | 51 | 42 | 603 | 524 | Messi +79 |
| 32 | 31 | 44 | 634 | 568 | Messi +66 |
| 33 | 38 | 28 | 672 | 596 | Messi +76 |
| 34 | 11 | 37 | 683 | 633 | Messi +50 |
| 35 | 21 | 36 | 704 | 669 | Messi +35 |
| 36 | 11 | 24 | 715 | 693 | Messi +22 |
| 37 | 23 | 17 | 738 | 710 | Messi +28 |