Lionel Messi might not be in the same league as Cristiano Ronaldo anymore, but he is still battling the Portuguese star in the record books. 

On Saturday, the 38-year-old Messi scored his sixth brace in seven games for Inter Miami as they beat the New York Red Bulls 5–1, but it was the mark he set in the matchup that brought Ronaldo into the conversation. 

Both goals came through open play, which brought him to 764 non-penalty goals in his career, surpassing Ronaldo’s 763, while doing so in 167 less career games. 

At the same time, the goals brought him to 18 in MLS this season, keeping him in the running for the MLS Golden Boot, level with Nashville SC’s Sam Surridge.

Messi’s goals against the Red Bulls also saw his Miami total rise to 58 goals and 26 assists in 68 games since joining the club in the summer of 2023. While that pales in comparison to Ronaldo’s 93 goals and 11 assists in 105 games with Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr, Messi has only scored two Miami penalties, compared to Ronaldo’s 25 Saudi spot-kicks.

Although neither are likely to ever be in the Ballon d’Or conversation again, the history and battle between the two for the tag of the greatest of all time remains heated, especially among their fans, even if it has cooled down among the players. 

“I have a lot of respect and admiration for Cristiano Ronaldo and for the career he's had and continues to have, because he's still competing at the highest level,” Messi said in June.

“The competition with him was on the pitch. Each of us wanted to do the best for our team. Obviously, as always, everything stayed on the field... Off the pitch, we are two normal people. We're not friends obviously because we don't spend time together, but we've always treated each other with a lot of respect.”

Messi returns to the pitch later this week with the MLS All-Stars in an exhibition game against the best of Liga MX, while Ronaldo’s Al Nassr return to Saudi Pro League action in August. 

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Lionel Messi Surpasses Cristiano Ronaldo’s All-Time Scoring Record With Inter Miami Brace.

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