The debate surrounding Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo might be over for good.
Messi and Ronaldo's careers have been intertwined for nearly the past two decades due to their time in La Liga. When it comes to their résumés, it's hard to choose who has the better individual accolades. Messi is an eight-time Ballon d'Or winner and has been named UEFA's Best Player in Europe three times. Ronaldo, meanwhile, has won those same exact awards five and four times, respectively.
Where Messi has the significant edge is his World Cup success. Not only did he lead Argentina to the title in 2022, he has the most goals scored in tournament history. Ronaldo, on the other hand, has never been to the World Cup final.
Even though Messi didn't need to add more accomplishments to his name, he has Argentina one win away from back-to-back World Cup titles. He came up huge in the semifinals against England, setting up two goals in the final 15 minutes of action.
After Argentina defeated England on Wednesday, countless people said the Messi-Ronaldo debate is officially done.
"Messi > Ronaldo," New York Knicks star Josh Hart wrote on X.
"The Messi v Ronaldo debate may be getting wrapped up," one person commented.
"The roughest day to be a Cristiano Ronaldo fan," another person said.
"I think Messi has ended the Ronaldo debate these last two World Cups," Indiana Fever writer Robin Lundberg said.
"No trolling what case does Ronaldo have over Messi in the goat debate now," a fan asked.
The road to another World Cup title won't be easy.
Argentina has a date with Spain this Sunday at MetLife Stadium. While the deending champions have been exceptional in crunch time, cracking the code against Spain's defense won't be easy.
Spain's defense has given up just one goal this entire tournament. It's a stat that just doesn't seem real.
That being said, Argentina just keeps on coming up with the goods when it matters most. We can't wait to see how the final plays out.
