With his goal against Valencia, Lionel Messi drew level with Edson Arantes do Nascimento 'Pele' for the most goals scored with a single club.
They are two of the greatest ever and here are 10 things that the two footballing legends have in common.
1. The most goals scored for a single club
Pele notched a total of 643 goals for Santos, while Messi has now done the same with Barcelona.
2. Appearances at the Camp Nou
Messi has scored 378 goals in the Camp Nou. Pele played three times in the same stadium: in 1959 and in 1960, scoring three goals in those first two visits, and again in 1963.
3. The No.10 shirt
Pele wore the No.10 throughout his whole career, first at Santos and later at New York Cosmos. Messi started out with the No.30 and later wore No.19 before wearing the No.10 for the first time in the 2008/09 season at Barcelona.
4. A debut in a friendly match
Both players made their first-team debuts in friendly matches. In 1956, Pele made his official debut with Santos at the age of 15. The opponent was Corinthians. Messi made his first appearance in the first team in a friendly against Porto in 2003 at the age of 16.
5. Incredible goalscoring stats
Pele scored 757 goals in 786 matches (an average of 0.93 goals per game). Messi, meanwhile, has an average of 0.79.
6. Several personal awards
Both have won numerous elite prizes and individuals awards, but there are two that stand out. Firstly, the World Cup's Golden Ball, which Pele won in 1970 and which Messi did in 2014. Secondly, both were nominated in Time Magazine's 'Time's 100: The Most Important People of the Century' as the Brazilian topped the list in 1999, while Messi did the same in 2012.
7. Youngest World Cup scorers for their countries
The two stars have the title of being the youngest ever World Cup scorers for their respective countries. Pele opened his World Cup account at the age of 16 years and 259 days. The Argentine did the same at the age of 18 years and 357 days.
8. Similar height
All of their brilliance is produced by quite small bodies. Neither Pele or Messi are taller than 175 cm. Pele stood at 173 cm during his career and Messi at 170 cm.
9. Governmental awards
Their incredible achievements also extend to awards from the government. In 1992, Pele was given the National Order of Merit from the Brazilian government. In 2019, Messi received one of the most important distinctions in Catalonia, the St George's Cross.
10. The most international goals in South America
Pele is the highest scoring South American ever at international level, with 77. Messi is chasing him down with 71. This is one of the few records the Argentine forward has left to break.
Abdullahjalloh
709
You forgot number 11.They both living LEGENDS!
praneetmessi
610
4 GOATS you can choose one for yourself who you like the most but please don't disrespect the other because they all are absolute legends of the game no one can come close to them
KHETHLWAZ
544
i heard news about the greatness of Pele, but in this century, only Messi greatness outshine them all❤💙
zutmnos
527
The two goats could either be MM or MP !. MP is for Messi and Pele or MM for Messi and Maradona! Cristiano is portugal 🇵🇹 goat 🐐! Cristiano and Messi played against themselves in Laliga for 9yrs and cr7 won 2 Laliga in 9yrs while messi won 6 in 9yrs. cr7 was completely dominated, subdued and conqured by messi in Laliga! Both played against each other for 35 times, cr7 won 8 times while messi won 16 times! Cristiano won 3 ucl titles in a row but never played against Messi ! Cr7 won 2 major international trophies but he never played against messi! Cristiano may have many hatrick but never won hatrick ballondor and hatrick Golden shoes like messi did! Cristiano is a goal machine and a goal poacher but Messi is the more superior version of a goal machine because in the history of football Messi is the only player to ever scored 91 goals in a single calendar year! As a goal machine, christiano has 4 Golden shoes but messi shows superiority by winning 6 times! At the biggest international football stage, Messi has won the Golden ball, lost final of world cup but Portugal 🇵🇹 has never gone beyond semi at the biggest stage of Football ,the world cup!
GJGREGJO
425
Ten things me and Messi and Pele have in common 1. Red Blood 2. Teeth(don't know Pele have them now) 3. Hair 4. Tongue 5. Left foot 6. Trophies(I won a trophy for poem recitation at primary) 7. Eyes(1pair) 8. GF/Wife(1 each) 9. Instagram account 10. Jersey with #10 printed on back
D10S_LM10
417
You forgot important point.. Pele was loyal to Santos and Messi is loyal for Barcelona.. Both gave thier heart to the club. ❤️
Mosanya
373
Pele : Messi can't score headers. Messi: