The Messi vs Ronaldo rivalry will go down as one of the biggest of its kind in the history of the sport. What makes it so special, is that their rivalry seems eternal and at no point will a football fan back one of them with full conviction. This season presents another such conundrum. Messi had a terrific domestic season in which he bagged the European Golden Shoe and won the La Liga.

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However, as the World Cup dawned upon us, both men were tasked with leading seemingly inept national squads. Ronaldo, was never going to be one to sit quietly and he has absolutely lit up this WC. Now, with misery piling onto Messi after Argentina's shocking 0-3 defeat to Croatia on Thursday, the debate for the GOAT seems to have shifted towards the latter.

Lionel Messi has always been chided for below par performances on the international arena, and his performance against Croatia last night would have done no good to his cause. One could argue that Messi was let down by his teammates and his manager's team selection, but despite that caveat, his stats from the Croatia game were truly shocking.

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Messi had 47 touches in the entire match and registered only shot in the game. On various occasions, he did try to drop deep into midfield and create chances, but to no avail.

In the earlier group game, Iceland employed a similar tactic as Messi was surrounded by 4-5 players every time he had the ball. That game ended with him having missed a poorly placed penalty past an impenetrable Icelandic goalkeeper.

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Messi's wait for a World Cup goal now extends to 675 minutes, as he still waits for a goal in Russia. Even with a below average team, Messi's statistics from this World Cup have been a major disappointment so far.

Contrary to Messi's fortunes at the World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo has been on fire. He leads the race for the Golden Boot having scored all 4 of Portugal's goal so far. And in doing so, he has broken numerous goal scoring records.

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He not only singlehandedly helped Portugal avoid defeat to Spain, but also scored their solitary goal in their win against Ronaldo. With such statistics, any statement emphasizing Ronaldo's importance to Portugal will seem insufficient.

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As Messi waits for his first goal in Russia, Ronaldo has now scored at 4 the World Cup. If Portugal are to repeat their antics of Euro 2016, Ronaldo will have to be a major factor in that cause. 

With the surety of an astute midfield, dependability of a sturdy defence and reliance on an assured manager, Ronaldo has all the support to produce a memorable WC performance that football fans could relish for a lifetime.