Lionel Messi v Cristiano Ronaldo Head-To-Head: Show-stopping goals from Leo & CR7 steal the limelight

The two megastars remain neck and neck in the goalscoring charts, but who was better overall throughout February? Our Blog takes a look at their performances

As part of our monthly series, Our Blogcompiles the statistical data, expert analysis, and progressive season records in La Liga on two of the best players in the world, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
August/September Head-to-Head: Matchday 1-5
October Head-to-Head: Matchday 6-10
November Head-to-Head: Matchday 11-13
December Head-to-Head: Matchday 14-16
January Head-to-Head: Matchday 17-20

LA LIGA: ROUND 21

vs REAL SOCIEDAD February 4 Camp Nou	RESULT	Barcelona 2-1 Real Sociedad
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 95 Goals 1 Assists 1 Shots 7 Shots on goal 5 Passes 79 Passes completed 68
	PLAYER RATING	7.0 'Provided an inch perfect pass to set up Tello for the first goal but will have been frustrated by his own lack of killer instinct in the first half. He made up for his earlier missed chances by scoring a neat goal in the second half after latching on the end of a great pass by Dani Alves.'

vs GETAFE February 4 Coliseum Alfonso Perez	RESULT	Getafe 0-1 Real Madrid
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 94 Goals 0 Assists 0 Shots 4 Shots on goal 2 Passes 58 Passes completed 38
	PLAYER RATING	7.0 'Headed just over with his back to goal early on, then went down in the area under a challenge from Cata Diaz. Was then hauled down by Cata when in full flight but saw the resulting free-kick saved by Moya. Made very poor contact with a volleyed effort which he screwed wide just before the break, then cut in from the left in second half but fired straight at Moya. Saw an effort correctly ruled out for offside late on.'

TICS

LA LIGA: ROUND 22

vs OSASUNA February 11 Camp Nou	RESULT	Osasuna 3-2 Barcelona
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 94 Goals 0 Assists 0 Shots 5 Shots on goal 3 Passes 74 Passes completed 52
	PLAYER RATING	5.5 'The conditions of the match certainly had a negative effect on the Argentine. Attempted a few strong runs through the centre but each well handled by Osasuna. Was guilty of taking too many touches at times, particularly in the first half when he had the chance to strike at goal first time from a decent position on the penalty spot.'

vs LEVANTE February 12 Santiago Bernabeu	RESULT	Real Madrid 4-2 Levante
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 94 Goals 3 Assists 1 Shots 11 Shots on goal 4 Passes 46 Passes completed 38
	PLAYER RATING	9.0 Top of the Match 'A wonderful display from the Portuguese forward, who was a threat throughout, scoring a penalty, a fine header and a stunning strike from distance to complete his hat-trick before bagging an assist as well when he set up Benzema. Also produced a brilliant flick to set up the Frenchman for a controversially disallowed strike early on.'

LA LIGA: ROUND 23

vs VALENCIA February 19 Camp Nou	RESULT	Barcelona 5-1 Valencia
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 93 Goals 4 Assists 0 Shots 11 Shots on goal 5 Passes 68 Passes completed 53
	PLAYER RATING	9.5 Top of the Match 'His performance shows why he is the current Ballon d'Or holder. Ran at Valencia incessantly and they just could not handle him. Scored a magnificent four goals in the match with two close-range finishes, a pass into an open goal, and a truly masterful lob over Diego Alves. An all round stunning display.'

vs RACING SANTANDER February 18 Santiago Bernabeu	RESULT	Real Madrid 4-0 Racing
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 94 Goals 1 Assists 0 Shots 8 Shots on goal 2 Passes 43 Passes completed 33
	PLAYER RATING	6.5 'Immediately involved as he headed against the post and then nodded Madrid in front from point-blank range moments later. But he also missed several good opportunities and was woefully off target with his free-kicks once again.'

LA LIGA: ROUND 24

vs ATLETICO MADRID February 26 Vicente Calderon	RESULT	Atletico 1-2 Barcelona
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 95 Goals 1 Assists 0 Shots 1 Shots on goal 1 Passes 54 Passes completed 43
	PLAYER RATING	7.5 Top of the Match 'He was superb in the build up to Alves' goal, dribbling past a couple of players before playing the ball out to Fabregas who provided the assist. Although he got booked in the first half and will now miss Barca's next game, he proved the difference here, scoring a fabulous free kick in the 81st minute to give Barcelona the win, curling the ball into the top corner from the left with Courtois caught stranded.'

vs RAYO VALLECANO February 26 Campo de Futbol de Vallecas	RESULT	Rayo 0-1 Real Madrid
	INDIVIDUAL MATCH STATS	Minutes played 94 Goals 1 Assists 0 Shots 7 Shots on goal 3 Passes 17 Passes completed 9
	PLAYER RATING	7.5 Top of the Match 'The pick of the bunch for his side once more and eventually made the difference with a quite stunning backheeled effort as he improvised with his back to goal. Came close to another when he lashed into the side netting and tested Joel with a fierce free kick as well.'

FEBRUARY STATISTICS

377	MINUTES PLAYED	376
6	GOALS	5
0	PENALTIES	1

1	ASSISTS	1
24 / 14 (58.3%)	TOTAL SHOTS / ON GOAL	30 / 11 (36.7%)
275 / 216 (78.5%)	PASSES / COMPLETED	164 / 118 (72%)
7.37	GOAL.COM AVERAGE RATING	7.5
28	2011-12 LA LIGA GOALS	29
43 (41)	2011-12 COMPETITIVE GOALS (APPEARANCES)	37 (36)

http://i1.goal.com/files/images/stats/goal/team-logos/1/451_48x48.jpg

EXPERT ANALYSIS Martin Macdonald | La Liga Match Coverage Specialist

The saga between the duo took some interesting turns in the month of February. Each enjoyed three excellent games and one relatively poor performance, while both have continued to score freely. However, the fate of their clubs has differed. Real Madrid have picked up 12 points out of 12 this month, whereas Barcelona suffered a damaging 3-2 defeat at the hands of Osasuna, leaving Jose Mourinho's men with a commanding 10-point cushion at the top of the table. However, despite a below-average performance from Messi in Pamplona, the Argentine's response has been characteristically impressive. What better way to emerge from a bad game than to score four goals against the third-best side in the league; Messi was magical in the 5-1 victory over Valencia, with his pace and ruthlessness proving too much to handle for a usually capable defensive unit. The defeat at the Reyno de Navarra represented a blip, as only the week before he had grabbed a goal and an assist in the victory over Real Sociedad. While Messi and Barcelona were toiling in Pamplona, Ronaldo helped himself to a brilliant hat-trick in an impressive 4-0 victory over Levante. He looked as good as ever in a display of pace and intensity, one which was capped by a stunning strike as he cut in from the left and sent a rocket into the top corner. The most interesting battle, however, came in the last round of matches of the month. Both clubs won their respective matches narrowly, with each player providing a memorable moment. Ronaldo helped Los Blancos overcome a stubborn Rayo side with an audacious backheel in a single-goal win at Vallecas. But Messi was not to be outdone, and later that night, the Argentine won Barca's match against Atletico Madrid with an improvised free-kick from the left that flew into the top corner. Both were moments of genius.