Messi strengthen’s GOAT claim after breaking another Ronaldo goalscoring record

LIONEL MESSI strengthened his GOAT claim over Cristiano Ronaldo after breaking another goalscoring record previously held by his rival.

The 35-year-old overtook Ronaldo’s tally for goals in top five European leagues by scoring his 697th for Paris Saint-Germain against Montpellier last night.

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Messi equalled the Portuguese legend’s tally in early January – but did so in 88 games fewer.

And now, three weeks later, Messi finally added the special extra goal he needed to claim the record outright in 84 games less.

In a game which saw Kylian Mbappe miss a first-half penalty and see two PSG goals ruled out by VAR, Messi and Co finally broke the deadlock 10 minutes after the interval.

Fabian Ruiz opened the scoring with his first PSG goal since his summer move from Napoli, before he turned provider for Messi.

Picking up the ball just outside the area, Ruiz played a pass through the eye of a needle for the onrushing Messi.

Messi’s deft first touch was then followed up by a finish with his other foot into the bottom corner to double the Parisiens lead with his 28th goal contribution of the season.

Fans lavished praise onto the ex-Barcelona ace, with one saying: “He did not disappoint a fan who said Messi is the best player in history.”

A second said: “He’s 35 and still the best player in the world ????

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A third added: “Messi the Goat.”

With Messi now taking the lead in the all-time top five tally, Ronaldo will be hard-pressed to reclaim the record.

The ex-Manchester United ace is currently plying his trade in Saudi Arabia with Al-Nassr.

Ronaldo signed a record-breaking £173million-a-year contract to join the Middle East side after his contract at Man United was terminated following a bombshell interview.

However, Ronaldo endured a difficult 2022 following the summer, scoring just three times from 16 outings in the Premier League and Europa League.

Messi and Ronaldo recently faced off against one another for potentially the final time in an exhibition match between an All-Star Saudi league side and PSG last month.