Lionel Messi can’t ever match it: Al-Nassr’s Cristiano Ronaldo breaks goalscoring record soccer had never seen before
From Riyadh to Miami, the eternal comparison still frames modern soccer. Cristiano Ronaldo continues to defy age, logic, and history, while Lionel Messi remains the sport’s most natural genius. Yet even in a season where trophies have proven elusive and results uneven, a single moment has once again tilted the long-running debate. On a difficult night for the club in Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo added another goal to his staggering career total—one that quietly pushed him beyond a personal boundary soccer has never seen crossed before.
The latest chapter came during a Saudi Pro League clash that ended in frustration rather than celebration. The Al-Nassr captain scored from the penalty spot late in the match, registering his 958th career goal despite a defeat that slowed the title momentum of the club. On paper, it was just another loss in a worrying run of form. In context, it was something far bigger.
With that strike, the Portuguese superstar continued his relentless pursuit of the mythical 1,000-goal milestone, a number that once felt symbolic rather than attainable. Now, with just 42 goals remaining, the idea no longer feels abstract. More importantly, this goal carried historical weight that extends well beyond the Saudi Pro League.
The club has hit a difficult patch at the worst possible time. Three consecutive league matches without a win—against Al-Ettifaq, Al-Ahli, and Al-Qadsiah—have dropped them to second place with 31 points, now four behind the league leader ahead of a decisive derby. Despite the collective struggles, Ronaldo remains the focal point. He has 14 league goals this season, more shots than any other player in the division, and continues to carry the attack even when results falter.
The moment that changes everything
This is where the full significance of the 40-year-old veteran’s latest goal becomes clear. With that strike, Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player in history to score at least one senior goal in 25 consecutive calendar years, spanning from 2002 through 2026: no pauses, no gaps, no missed seasons.
From his early years as a teenage winger to his current role as a veteran goalscorer in Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo has found the net in every phase of his career. His first senior goals arrived in 2002. He crossed the 50-goal mark in a calendar year multiple times, including 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. Even deep into his thirties, he continued producing 40+ goal years in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2024, and 2025. In 2026, already on the scoresheet, the experienced star extends the streak into a quarter-century.
This is not a record built on a single peak, a golden generation, or one dominant team. It is a timeline that stretches across eras, continents, and tactical revolutions. From his teenage breakthrough in Portugal to dominance in England, Spain, Italy, and now Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo has scored every single year for a quarter of a century.
Why Messi cannot match this specific feat
Messi’s brilliance has never been in doubt. His peaks rival—and in many cases surpass—any player in history. But this particular record belongs solely to Ronaldo. The Argentine’s senior scoring career began later, with his first competitive goals arriving in 2004.
As a result, he does not have goals registered in the early calendar years of Ronaldo’s career, making it impossible for him to claim uninterrupted scoring from 2002 onward. That distinction does not diminish his greatness. It simply highlights how Ronaldo’s longevity has followed a different, almost unnatural arc.