Highlights

• Messi has scored more goals with his left foot (443) than Ronaldo (119), showcasing his dominance with his magical left peg.
• Ronaldo has scored more goals with his right foot (260) than Messi (89), highlighting his prowess as a two-footed player.
• Ronaldo is one of the greatest headers of the ball, scoring 117 goals with his head, while Messi has only managed 24, displaying Ronaldo's superiority in this aspect.

Official record books say Cristiano Ronaldo is the greatest goalscorer in football history. Of course, a certain player a few years junior may have something to say about that before the two superstars eventually hang up their boots.

While Lionel Messi’s overall tally may be slightly less than Ronaldo’s as things stand, we decided to look at the different types of goals scored by both players. Using data from Transfermarkt, we’ve looked at every type of goal scored by the pair during their club careers.

The results? Well, let’s take a look:

Left-footed

Cristiano Ronaldo: 119

Lionel Messi: 443

We shouldn't be surprised that Messi has scored far more goals with his left foot than Ronaldo. After all, the Argentine is predominantly one-footed and has scored the majority of his goals with that magical left peg. While Ronaldo unsurprisingly comes off second-best in this category, the 119 goals he's scored with his weaker foot is an impressive tally. Ronaldo is one of the most two-footed goalscorers of our generation and has scored more with his weaker foot than many manage with their strongest.

Right-footed

Cristiano Ronaldo: 260

Lionel Messi: 89

This shows which of the two players is more two-footed. The Portuguese superstar, Ronaldo, has bagged 260 with his stronger right foot compared to 119 with his left. Meanwhile, Messi has managed just 89 with his weaker right foot, compared to the 443 with his left. Of course, one of those right-footed goals from Messi came in the World Cup final against France, bundling the ball home in extra time.

Headers

Cristiano Ronaldo: 117

Lionel Messi: 24

While judging Ronaldo and Messi by who scored the most goals with their right and left feet is slightly unfair, judging them by headed goals shows a clear winner. Ronaldo is one of the greatest headerers of the ball football has ever seen, scoring 117 goals with his head during his career. Of course, it helps that he's taller than Messi, who has managed just 24 with his head.

Penalties

Cristiano Ronaldo: 135

Lionel Messi: 84

Fans of both Ronaldo and Messi have rather immature nicknames for their rival player due to the number of penalties they call. 'Penaldo' or 'Pessi' are names you will often see on social media after they've scored a successful spot-kick. Ronaldo and Messi have scored more than 200 penalties between them but it's the former who takes the 'penalty crown' with 135 to his name. Messi may well have a couple more to his name if he didn't try passing his - or unselfishly giving one of his teammates the opportunity to score from 12 yards.

Direct free-kicks

Cristiano Ronaldo: 49

Lionel Messi: 54

Earlier in his career, Ronaldo was considered one of the best free kicks around. He was one of the first to nail the knuckleball technique and scored some absolute screamers - remember that one for Manchester United against Portsmouth? But his success rate has dropped dramatically as he's got older. That has seen Messi overtake his rival with 54 direct free kicks to his name. One of those successful efforts came on his Inter Miami debut in the 94th minute against Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup.

Outside of the box (Excluding free kicks)

Cristiano Ronaldo: 52

Lionel Messi: 78

Is this a surprising result? We think so. Ronaldo finding the back of the net from long-range sticks in our mind a lot more than Messi. He possesses more power in his shot than Messi but has scored just 52 from long range compared to Messi's 78. Then again, how many times have we seen Messi cut in from the right wing and curl the ball beautifully with his left foot from just outside the area?

Tap-ins

Cristiano Ronaldo: 14

Lionel Messi: 10

The sign of being in the right place at the right time. There's no such thing as a bad goal and a tap-in will mean just as much to both Ronaldo and Messi than a 30-yard strike. Ronaldo has slightly more from close range, 14-10 in his favour.

Solo runs

Cristiano Ronaldo: 2

Lionel Messi: 5

Messi is quite possibly the greatest dribbler in football history. Is it any surprise that he's managed five solo goals during his career, then? Ronaldo has managed two but who can forget Messi's solo goal against Getafe that was Diego Maradona-esq?

Hat-tricks

Cristiano Ronaldo: 52

Lionel Messi: 48

Did you know, Ronaldo has more matchballs underneath his bed. The former Manchester United man has scored 52 hat-tricks which is a quite ridiculous number. We wonder how many he's kept. Messi, meanwhile, has 48 to his name.

Game-winning goals

Cristiano Ronaldo: 229

Lionel Messi: 193

Not all goals are equal. The fifth goal in a 5-0 victory is not quite the same as the only goal in a 1-0 win. And Ronaldo has proven he's the most clutch player with 229 game-winning goals, compared to Messi's 193.

Total goals

Cristiano Ronaldo: 721

Lionel Messi: 720

At the time of writing, Ronaldo has scored just one more club goal than Messi. Both players are still going strong in their 30s, and it's hard to see either of them retiring any time soon. While Messi may be two years younger than his rival, Ronaldo certainly won't want to be the first one to hang up his boots.

Conclusion

Unsurprisingly, both Ronaldo and Messi have scored more with their stronger foot than the other. However, Ronaldo has managed 109 goals with his weaker foot, whereas Messi has managed 81 with his right. Again, it isn’t a shock to see Ronaldo come out on top when it comes to headers with him finding the net on 117 occasions, compared to Messi’s 24.

It seems ‘Penaldo’ is a more accurate nickname than ‘Pessi’ with Ronaldo finding the net 135 times from the penalty spot. Messi on 84 occasions. But the Argentine is better from set-pieces outside the box with 54 successful free-kicks, five more than Ronaldo.

In terms of goals from outside of the box, Messi leads the way with 78 to Ronaldo's 52. On the other end of the spectrum, Ronaldo also has more tap-ins to his name with 14 to Messi’s 10. However, the Inter Miami star has more solo goals.

Ronaldo has more hat-trick, 52 to Messi's 48 and he may well be the most clutch player of the two with 229 game-winning goals compared to Messi's 193.Either way, we’re talking about possibly the two greatest goalscorers in football history.