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25.02.2012 » An analytic analysis on Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi stats

After looking at Cristiano Ronaldo stats from last season and
cross-check them with this year's numbers, it seems safe to say that the
Portuguese superstar keeps improving remarkably as a player. A
deep and individual analytical analysis is provided below and we'll
also be looking at Barcelona's Lionel Messi
stats in order to set a sort of benchmark comparison. All the data
gathered is confined to the Spanish League spectrum.
Cristiano Ronaldo simply
doesn't cease to amaze. After an outstanding 2010/2011 season, where he
already broke several records including La Liga's all-time
highest goalscoring mark by scoring 40 goals, this season Ronaldo
could very well be on the verge of making History once again. We looked
at Ronaldo's La Liga stats in the
2010-2011 season and compared them with the ones from this season.
Numbers don't seem to lie on this study, as the Portuguese
player improved in almost every possible scenario. Unavoidably, we did
the same for Lionel Messi and the results seen on this
article might be a bit surprising for a few people.

It's important to start by noting that all the data
has been collected/gathered from La Liga's official website (ligabbva.com)
and for that reason being, we'll limit all our analysis exclusively to
the Spanish League. Let's then start by looking at the raw
numbers obtained by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel
Messi, for both last season (2010-2011) and the current one
(2011-12), but not comparing them just yet.
www.RONALDO7.net: Ronaldo vs Messi -
Stats table I
|
||
---|---|---|
Season: 2011-2012
|
Cristiano Ronaldo
|
Lionel Messi
|
La Liga matches so far
|
23
|
23
|
Games played
|
23
|
23
|
Minutes played
|
2084
|
2076
|
Goals
|
28
|
27
|
Assists
|
7
|
8
|
Shots on Target
|
63
|
70
|
Passes
|
824
|
1267
|
Balls recovered
|
38
|
29
|
Balls lost
|
219
|
294
|
Offsides
|
15
|
17
|
Fouls
commited
|
19
|
18
|
Fouls
suffered
|
57
|
46
|
Yellow
cards
|
4
|
4
|
www.RONALDO7.net: Ronaldo vs Messi -
Stats table II
|
||
---|---|---|
Season: 2010-2011
|
Cristiano Ronaldo
|
Lionel Messi
|
La Liga matches
|
38
|
38
|
Games played
|
34
|
35
|
Minutes played
|
3037
|
2975
|
Goals
|
40
|
31
|
Assists
|
9
|
17
|
Shots on Target
|
104
|
77
|
Passes
|
1045
|
1927
|
Balls recovered
|
42
|
51
|
Balls lost
|
391
|
358
|
Offsides
|
16
|
18
|
Fouls
commited
|
23
|
20
|
Fouls
suffered
|
82
|
55
|
Yellow
cards
|
2
|
2
|
Last year, Ronaldo wiped
out several records, including the one for La Liga's highest
goalscorer (38), after scoring 40 goals out of 34 games. Barcelona's
Lionel Messi couldn't even get close, as he only
managed to hit the back of the net for 31 times, from the 35 games that
he stepped on to the pitch. In the other hand, the Argentinian
pulled of 17 assists for goals, while the Portuguese player
only had 9 for the same time being. In terms of passes, Messi
had nearly the double when looking at Ronaldo's
numbers (1927 vs 1045) and also managed to recover more balls (51 vs 42)
and lose possession less times than CR7 (358
vs 391).

This season's figures seem to have been changing a
bit, as Cristiano Ronaldo not only is managing
to keep his goal tally above Messi's (28 vs 27), but
he also tops the Argentinian in several other parameters of the
game. However, in terms of assists, Messi still
doesn't get beaten by Ronaldo (8 vs 7) and it
happens the same with passes (1267 vs 824), even though the gap has
definitely shortened. The two teams playing style certainly keeps having
a decisive role in those two stats just mentioned, but it's curious to
note that even on these circumstances, the difference looks thinner than
ever. As for the "balls lost" and "balls recovered"
stats, tables seem to have turned and this season, it's Ronaldo
who is pulling off better numbers. The Portuguese lost the
ball 219 times against Messi's 294, while CR7
recovered possession 38 times against 29 from "La Pulga".
Clearly an indication that Ronaldo is getting
more involved in the game and that he is assuming a more proeminent role
in Real Madrid.

As we mentioned on the start, we're conducting an
analytical analysis by looking at Ronaldo and Messi
stats in La Liga, always having in mind the main purpose of
providing an objective perspective on how their games and performances
have been changing and evolving. For that reason, we've all also
computed a few stats ratios that may help understanding how both Cristiano
Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have been
developping since last season. It's precisely on this improvement
aspect, that CR7 numbers leave no room for
doubts, as the Portuguese excelled himself in almost every
possible parameter. In the other hand and despite Lionel Messi's
goalscoring record is in fact better than ever as well, he actually got
worse in several other dimensions of the game.

www.RONALDO7.net: Ronaldo ratios -
Stats table III
|
|||
---|---|---|---|
Parameters: |
2010/2011
|
Season improvements
|
2011/2012
|
Ronaldo
|
Ronaldo
|
||
Presences ratio
|
89%
|
+11%
|
100%
|
Average minutes played per game
|
89,32
|
+1%
|
90,61
|
Average goals per game
|
1,18
|
+3%
|
1,22
|
Average time (mins) to score
|
76
|
-2%
|
74
|
Average assists per game
|
0,26
|
+15%
|
0,30
|
Average time (mins) to assist
|
337
|
-12%
|
298
|
Shots on target per game
|
3,06
|
-10%
|
2,74
|
Shots on target efficiency (goals)
|
38%
|
+6%
|
44%
|
Passes
per game
|
31
|
+17%
|
36
|
Balls
recovered per game
|
1,24
|
+34%
|
1,65
|
Balls
lost per game
|
11,50
|
-17%
|
9,52
|

www.RONALDO7.net: Messi ratios - Stats
table IV
|
|||
---|---|---|---|
Parameters: |
2010/2011
|
Season improvements
|
2011/2012
|
Messi
|
Messi
|
||
Presences ratio
|
92%
|
+8%
|
100%
|
Average minutes played per game
|
85,00
|
+6%
|
90,26
|
Average goals per game
|
0,89
|
+33%
|
1,17
|
Average time (mins) to score
|
96
|
-20%
|
77
|
Average assists per game
|
0,49
|
-28%
|
0,35
|
Average time (mins) to assist
|
175
|
+48%
|
260
|
Shots on target per game
|
2,20
|
+38%
|
3,04
|
Shots on target efficiency (goals)
|
40%
|
-2%
|
39%
|
Passes
per game
|
55
|
0%
|
55
|
Balls
recovered per game
|
1,46
|
-13%
|
1,26
|
Balls
lost per game
|
10,23
|
+25%
|
12,78
|
By focusing at the "Average goals per game"
parameter, we can see that Ronaldo has
progressed from 1.18 to 1.22, which is roughly a +3%
improvement. Lionel Messi has made the bigger jump
though, improving from 0.89 to 1.17 (+33%).
We may then look at the "Assists per game" parameter, which is
something where the Portuguese player has clearly gotten
better. In 2010/11, CR7 had an average of 0.26
assists per game, while in 2011/12, the number has raised to 0.30 (+15%). Switching the focus to Messi,
we immediatly note that this has been a particular area where the Argentinian
has been slowing down, as he dropped from a 0.49 assists per game
average, into a still remarkable 0.35 value (-28%).

Still running down the lists/tables, we can
identify a few others stats that called our attention. Analysing the "Passes
per game" parameter, we spotted a good sign on how Ronaldo's
game has changed this season. The Portuguese player averaged
31 passes per game in the entire 2010/2011 season, while now, he has a
36 passes average (+17%) in the on-going La
Liga campaign. In times where many people insist in saying that Ronaldo
is becoming more and more selfish, these stats and the ones mentioned
in the paragraph above, somehow help proving otherwise.

Finally, we picked the "Ball recovered per game"
and "Balls lost per game" parameters, to once again, expose
some more numbers that show how Ronaldo's game
has improved since last year. In 2010/11, Ronaldo
had an average of 1.24 balls recovered per game, while this season, he
reached the 1.65 average (+34%). On the
same analysis scope, Messi decreased his contribution
to Barcelona, as he lowered from an average of 1.46 to
1.26 (-13%), which is way below Ronaldo
numbers in the current season campaign. Moving the focus to the "Balls
lost per game" metric, the same phenomenon gets repeated, as Cristiano
Ronaldo improved from a 11.5 to a 9.52 (-17%)
"balls lost per game" average, while Messi
started losing the ball possession a few more times than last year and
saw his average numbers switching from 10.23 to 12.78 (+25%).

Real Madrid next scheduled game
will be against Rayo Vallecano for the Spanish League "La
Liga", next Sunday (26-02-2012). This weekend you can watch Rayo vs Real Madrid, but also Chelsea vs Bolton, as well as Manchester City vs Blackburn Rovers
and Arsenal vs Tottenham, from our football live streams section. Cristiano
Ronaldo is expected to be a starter against Rayo
Vallecano.
Rayo Vallecano vs Real
Madrid kick-off time (26-02-2012):
Jakarta (Indonesia) | GMT+7:
22:00
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+1: 16:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+0: 15:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-2: 13:00
New York (United States) | GMT-5: 10:00
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-8: 07:00
Beijing (China) | GMT-8: 07:00
Spain (Madrid) | GMT+1: 16:00
Portugal and England (Lisbon/London) | GMT+0: 15:00
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) | GMT-2: 13:00
New York (United States) | GMT-5: 10:00
Los Angeles (United States) | GMT-8: 07:00
Beijing (China) | GMT-8: 07:00
Sources: ronaldo7.net
/ ligabbva.com























