Ronaldo's despair and Messi's euphoria collide in the Champions League once again

The diverging moments of form displayed by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi come together in the Champions League, even if their paths so far this season are conflicting to say the least. While the Portuguese striker still reaps the rewards of a phenomenal end to last season, Messi continues to shine as he completes one of the best starts to a campaign in a Barcelona shirt.

Ronaldo is struggling to find the back of the net, something which has come to him innately in the past, and Messi has taken it upon himself to drive Valverde's Barcelona forward, almost entirely shouldering the responsibility in front of goal. A new Champions League week could see Real Madrid and Barcelona set one foot in the last-16 round, while the pair continue their particular feud.

Until now, in European competitions, Ronaldo has the better of his opponent. He has made more appearances than Messi (143 to the Argentine's 118) and has therefore scored more goals (110 to Messi's 97) and has provided more assists (33 to 26). The Portugal international has also bagged more 'doubles' (24-20) and hat-tricks (6-5), while they both managed once to score four times in a single game.

Messi's goals-per-match ratio, however, is better than Ronaldo's. The Barca man averages 0.82 goals per game while the Madrid striker scores an average 0.76 goals in every Champions League fixture, while his assist ratio of 0.23 is better than his rival's. Messi averages 0.22 assists per match, but the two-year gap between the two will likely allow the Argentine to improve on the former United star's numbers.

The pair continue to rip up the record books and there is no sign of who will emerge victorious when the time finally comes when they are forced to hang up their boots. For the time being, the stellar rivalry continues, with one of them currently lamenting his sorrowful form while the other basks in quite possibly the best moment in his career.