He was more of a fixture in a Sporting Lisbon side that dropped back down to third and prematurely out of the Champions League’s first group stage. Ronaldo made his debut in April, in a friendly defeat to Croatia. Ronaldo was earning his second cap, both appearances off the bench, in Portugal’s 3-0 win a year from their hosting of Euro 2004.

His debut would be against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal. Lionel Messi started the season with disgrace in his native Argentina as he opted to play for the Spain under-21 side and was eventually capped by the senior team in June. They were less successful in Europe, however, falling at the UEFA Cup’s third round stage in Greece at Olympiakos.ģrd, 48/10 (2/0), PC 1st, 46/14 (1/0), UC Championship Manager

Ronaldo helped Sporting back into the Champions League via a Liga Sagres crown, accompanied with a successful cup stint, gifting him his first two winners’ medal. Lionel was a big feature in Barcelona’s Champions League campaign that ended in goal difference defeat in a second group stage containing Juventus and Borussia Dortmund. Remember, due to the age difference not being a factor, this almost acts as Lionel Messi’s 2003/04 season.Ĭristiano netted 12 in 39 matches, with Messi putting three more in the net but over more games. Cristiano Ronaldo made the transition into the Sporting Lisbon first team as did Lionel Messi at Barcelona. So, annoying myself in the process, I’ve decided to compare them.ġst, 39/12 (0/0), PC 5th, 47/15 (0/0) Championship Managerīoth players enjoyed fruitful seasons at such a young age. Why can’t we just enjoy them both play football? In fact, due to their constant nine-year duel at Spain’s two biggest clubs, the hype of a personal rivalry has hit such a boring heights that there’s a new school of thought: Swap the names around and all could be quotes from Madridistas or Barca fans. Since the emergence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi at their peak around 2007 or 2008, they have been compared endlessly and with no definitive answer. This means that both Ronaldo and Messi are the same age (16). N.B.: The Championship Manager 01/02 editor has a little kink where it reverts any created player with an age below 16 to aged 20 when you load the game.

Cm 01 02 best players