Cristiano Ronaldo scored 57 goals at age 38: How many does Lionel Messi need to surpass him?

T he comparison between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to determine who is the GOAT of soccer dates back several years.

However, if we compare both legends at age 38, Leo's current age, who has scored more goals?

The goal gap between Messi and CR7

While some fans compare Lionel and Cristiano for their personalities on and off the field, others are more loyal to statistics. Goals, games, assists, minutes played... everything counts for them.

A few years ago, when CR7 was 38 , he reached an impressive 57 goals . Currently, the Al Nassr star has a total of 953 goals at the age of 40.

Meanwhile, Messi turned 38 on June 24.To equal Cristiano Ronaldo's goal tally, the Argentine captain would need to score 32 more goals to match him and 33 to surpass him, as he currently has 25 . In total, Inter Miami's number 10 has scored 894 goals and is just six goals away from reaching 900 goals in his career.

Lionel could take advantage of his next commitment with the Argentine national team : a friendly match against Angola on Friday, November 14, at the 11 de Noviembre stadium in Luanda, which has a capacity of around 45,000 spectators. This will be Lionel Scaloni's team's last appearance until 2026.

Another interesting aspect will be to see if they participate in the 2026 World Cup . While the Portuguese star has confirmed that he will be present but that it will be his last tournament , Lionel has left his participation up in the air, stating that he " does not want to be a burden on his teammates " and that only time and his physical condition will determine it.

The FIFA World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, 2026.