Messi, Ronaldo and the top 10 European goalscorers of the last decade

The battle between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to be defined as the 'greatest of all-time' has been a fascinating watch over the years.

There is an argument to made for both and the duo have, by far, been the two outstanding players, especially across the last decade. In actual fact, either Messi or Ronaldo have won the Ballon d'Or in nine of the last ten seasons with Luka Modric the only exception back in 2018.

It is no surprise that the pair top the charts of the highest goalscorers across the top five European league's since the start of the 2012/13 campaign. So, with that in mind, here is a look at the top 10 on that list with Messi and Ronaldo unsurprisingly next to each other as first and second.

10 - Romelu Lukaku (168)

The Belgium international first broke onto the scene while on loan at West Bromwich Albion in 2012 and quickly established himself as one of the most dangerous Premier League forwards. Lukaku then left Chelsea on a permanent deal to join Everton two years' later, before enjoying a spell at Manchester United.

He cemented his place in the division's '100 club', having scored 113 goals in 240 matches. After a two-year stint at Inter Milan, where he won the Serie A title, Lukaku returned to Chelsea last summer. But he has since struggled for form, netting just eight times in the league.

9 - Karim Benzema (175)

This could be just the second time since 2007 where the Ballon d'Or is not awarded to one of Messi or Ronaldo due to the exceptional form of Benzema. The 34-year-old scored 44 goals in 46 games last season and helped Real Madrid to win the Champions League by beating Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool on route to the trophy.

However, Benzema has also produced remarkable figures over the past decade too and sits ninth on the list, having struck 175 times in 309 La Liga matches in that time. He has hit double-figures in every league season bar one, and interestingly, his goal record has improved since Ronaldo left the club in 2018.

8 - Edinson Cavani (179)

An experienced forward, Cavani will leave Manchester United at the end of his contract this summer. During the first of his two seasons at the club, the 35-year-old demonstrated why he has been renowned as one of the most clinical strikers in European football. He scored 17 times in 39 appearances across all competitions in 2020/21.

Before that, Cavani starred in his seven years at Paris Saint-Germain, where he spearheaded their evolution to become France's biggest club. The Uruguayan netted over 138 goals in 200 matches in Ligue 1.

Edinson Cavani ( Image: Getty Images)

7 - Harry Kane (183)

One of the younger members on the list, Kane did not score his first Premier League goal until April 2014, netting in a 5-1 win over Sunderland. The 28-year-old would go on to become Tottenham Hotspur's talisman as they challenged for titles and trophies during Mauricio Pochettino's time at the club.

Although Spurs were unable to get over the line in the respective competitions, Kane continued to score for fun and became just the first player to net over 20 league goals in four successive top-flight seasons since Alan Shearer. He is currently on 183 Premier League strikes and sits fifth on the all-time list.

6 - Ciro Immobile (187)

A player who often goes under the radar, Immobile has been a fantastic servant to Lazio following his move from Borussia Dortmund in 2016. He has won the Capocannoniere della Serie A ( Golden Boot) on four occasions, and most recently this season, where he struck 27 times in 31 matches.

Ciro Immobile ( Image: Getty Images)

He has also won the Serie A best forward award twice and the European Golden Shoe once. Immobile, who spent time at Torino, Borussia Dortmund and Sevilla before joining Lazio, has scored 187 goals over the past decade.

5 - Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang (196)

The Gabon international made a name for himself at Saint-Etienne and secured a big-money move to Borussia Dortmund in 2013 after winning the Coupe de la Ligue title. With Robert Lewandowski moving to arch rivals Bayern Munich, Aubameyang was tasked with the responsibility to replace the Polish forward, and it is safe to say he grasped the opportunity with both hands.

Aubameyang scored 98 Bundesliga goals in 144 appearances, before earning a move to Arsenal in January 2018 for a then club record fee. He won the Golden Boot in his first full season at the club with 22 goals and continued to bang them in for the Gunners, finishing on 68 Premier League strikes. He even hit double-figures during six months at Barcelona following his departure from Arsenal in January.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

4 - Luis Suarez (233)

Following a successful three-year stint at Liverpool, Suarez earned his 'dream' move to Barcelona after the 2014 World Cup. The Uruguay forward scored 69 times in the league for the Reds as they narrowly missed out on the title. But Suarez's numbers improved at Barca alongside Neymar and Messi in their front three.

He won four La Liga's, four Copa del Rey's and one Champions League during his six-year stint at the Catalan giants, netting 198 goals in 283 games in the process. Suarez decided to find a new challenge in 2020 and made the switch to rivals Atletico Madrid, where he won the league title in his first season.

3 - Robert Lewandowski (282)

Lewandowski is someone who could be on the move this summer and is keen to make the switch to Barcelona from Bayern Munich in the transfer window. This is after becoming the second-highest scorer in Bayern's history behind the late great Gerd Muller. Since joining the club from Dortmund in 2014, Lewandowski has 238 Bundesliga goals in 253 games - almost one every appearance.

Robert Lewandowski ( Image: Getty Images)

The Poland international has won every honour you can at Bayern, lifting the Champions League two seasons ago, while winning the Bundesliga title eight times. He has been since linked with a move to Barca, who are keen to sign the 33-year-old after he scored 50 times in all competitions last term.

2 - Cristiano Ronaldo (298)

Second on this list is the inevitable Ronaldo, who despite being 37-years-of-age, scored the third-most goals in the Premier League last term behind Mohamed Salah and Heung min-Son. The forward made the switch back across to Old Trafford from Juventus in summer 2021 and struck 18 goals in 30 games in the top-flight.

Ronaldo will be remembered most by his incredible nine-year spell at Real Madrid, however, where he averaged more than a goal a game in La Liga, striking 311 times in 296 games. He would follow this up by scoring almost a ton of goals for Juventus, where he won the Serie A Footballer of the Year on two occasions.

Cristiano Ronaldo ( Image: Getty Images)

1 - Lionel Messi (311)

At the top of the tree in this particular list is Argentine hero Messi despite netting just six Ligue 1 goals in his maiden campaign at Paris Saint-Germain. Messi has taken on a slightly different, more deeper role in the French capital compared to his stint at Barcelona, where he cemented himself as one of the best.

The 34-year-old netted 305 goals in just under 350 La Liga appearances over the course of a nine-year period between 2012 and 2021 for Barcelona. He has won the Ballon d'Or seven times - more than any other player.