Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo. Since the late 2000s, this debate has divided opinion. As the duo rose to prominence as two of the most promising talents in world football during their early days at Barcelona and Manchester United, it was almost inevitable back then that we'd still be comparing them today.

Now, as both legendary footballers cast their spells outside of European football, with Al-Nassr and Inter Miami respectively, last year's Ballon d'Or - won for a record-extending eighth time by Messi - likely brings an end to a 16-year duopoly of two of the greatest players to ever grace the beautiful game.

In total, 26 players have shared a dressing room with both Messi and Ronaldo, and GIVEMESPORT has put together a starting XI comprising the 11 teammates who have made the most combined appearances alongside the pair.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Keylor Navas; Lisandro Martinez, Gabriel Heinze, Sergio Ramos

Keylor Navas's best years were at Real Madrid, as he won three Champions League titles in a row alongside Ronaldo, before joining arms with Messi at PSG to become the only goalkeeper to have ever been on the same team as both. Sergio Ramos also followed a similar career path, becoming the best defender in Champions League history before forming an impromptu friendship with Messi in Paris after years of intense rivalry between the two at Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Gabriel Heinze was lucky enough to have played three seasons with Ronaldo at Manchester United and narrowly missed overlapping with him at Real Madrid. Meanwhile, his Argentine background meant he shared the pitch with Messi across two World Cups.

Man United defender Lisandro Martinez also had the chance to play with both stars, having won the 2022 World Cup alongside Messi, and also been a teammate of Ronaldo at Old Trafford at the beginning of the 2022-23 season.

Midfield

Deco, Miralem Pjanic, Fernando Gago, Angel Di Maria

Deco played with Messi while the Argentinian took his first steps in professional football, while featuring alongside Ronaldo at international level, but once said that neither of them were as good as Ronaldinho. Miralem Pjanic is one of the few fortunate souls to have achieved success with both, winning Serie A with Ronaldo and the Copa del Rey with Messi.

This same success wasn't emulated by Fernando Gago, who, after winning the Spanish Super Cup with Ronaldo at Real Madrid before leaving early in 2012 would go on to lose three major finals with Messi and Argentina. Nevertheless, La Albiceleste finally returned to their forgotten bygone peaks in 2022, with Angel Di Maria making up a pivotal part of the team that helped Messi complete the set with a Jules Rimet trophy in Qatar.

Of course, it goes without saying that this career-defining triumph came after years of domestic and continental medal collecting with Ronaldo at Real Madrid, with the pair forming a close bond that kept Di Maria in the Spanish capital longer than he had initially anticipated. The Argentinean once admitted he would have left a year before 'La Decima' (Real Madrid's 10th European Cup, which they won in 2014) had it not been for Ronaldo.

Attack

Carlos Tevez, Paulo Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain

Across 2,067 combined appearances, Messi and Ronaldo have contributed to 2,358 goals and assists, and while a lot of those staggering numbers are made up by themselves, they would have been far less impressive without the talismanic attackers they linked up with throughout their careers. For Man United, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Argentina, and Portugal, they have both been the primary feature in many terrifying forward lines, and there have been plenty of prolific teammates that have helped them achieve the heights they did.

Carlos Tevez made up one-third of one of the Premier League's best front threes when he joined forces with Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney at Man United, although his success wasn't replicated alongside Messi for Argentina. Paulo Dybala was another who followed this trend, with he and Ronaldo forming a successful duo at Juventus, yet falling victim yet again to La Albiceleste's history of near-misses, until finding the keys to redemption in the 2022 World Cup.

Gonzalo Higuain, with Messi in the Argentine national team, lost three major finals due to missed chances and penalties. With Ronaldo, however, the lethal forward played for Real Madrid and Juventus, winning numerous trophies with both, including a league title in Italy and Spain.