Cristiano Ronaldo Under Pressure from Madrid Media to Beat Lionel Messi Record

Even the most ardent Lionel Messi supporters will find it hard to argue against Cristiano Ronaldo's dominance over the last year, but after a week which has seen Leo break both the La Liga and Champions League all-time goalscoring records, it's CR7 who is coming under pressure.

Alfredo Relano, chief columnist at Madrid-based publication AS, published an editorial titled "Messi makes off with a madridista record" ahead of Los Blancos' fixture with Basel on Wednesday (h/t Dermot Corrigan of ESPN FC).

Having scored three goals against APOEL to take his overall European tally to 74—surpassing Madrid legend Raul's 71 and leaving Ronaldo behind on 70—the Argentinian has broken up something of a continental tradition. Relano explained the situation (translated by Corrigan):

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From the second season of the European Cup—in the first year the top scorer was Yugoslavia's (Milos) Milutinovic—the record has always been Madrid's. The first was (Alfredo) Di Stefano, who on his retirement left it at 49. Raul brought it to 71. Messi has stepped into a garden that the madridista always had as their own.

"

Philippos Christou/Associated Press

The columnist also suggests that Ronaldo is under pressure to regain the mantle. Despite confirmation Madrid are already through to the knockout stages, Relano indicated Carlo Ancelotti will allow his iconic forward no respite during a potentially testing trip to Switzerland:

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Now the view turns inevitably towards Cristiano. The Madrid-Barca battle has become a Cristiano-Messi battle. Cristiano has been scoring at a better rate in these last months, he won the last Ballon d'Or, after four consecutive years of the Barcelona player. The madridista fan turns today to Cristiano, hoping for an improbable exploit: four goals.

"

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Spanish newspaper Marca, also affiliated with Madrid, has taken an alternate approach to downplay Messi's current dominance.

A seemingly contrived list of Ronaldo's recent records was posted by Luis A. Diaz, who emphasised "no-one else" has reached 20 goals so quickly in a single season. Manuel Malagon of the same publication noted Messi's achievement as "astonishing" without mentioning Ronaldo's name for comparison.

The ongoing battle is akin to this generation's "Pele or Diego Maradona" debate, but the difference is both appear in the same competitions and are directly comparable at the same time. If one doesn't grab a goalscoring record, the other usually does. Even FIFA.com promoted the rivalry prior to Ronaldo stepping onto the pitch against Basel:

Petros Karadjias/Associated Press

Football writer Charles Lawley suggested when it's all said and done, Messi will be remembered as the greatest:

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If you think people will look back & say "Ronaldo was better than Messi", hand yourself into police as you're a danger to yourself & others.

— Charles Lawley (@CharlesLawley) November 25, 2014"

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I'm not saying there haven't been times when Ronaldo has been better than Messi, there has. But in terms of an overall career. No contest.

— Charles Lawley (@CharlesLawley) November 25, 2014"

Ronaldo has three goals in four Champions League games this season, per WhoScored.com. He netted a record-breaking 17 last term, surpassing Messi's previous record of 14, to claim the most competition goals in a single campaign.

Funnily enough, Messi was the first player to score five in one Champions League appearance, something Ronaldo needs against Basel to take the overall initiative.

Paul White/Associated Press

Ronaldo will play his sixth European tie of the season before Messi, however, meaning he could reasonably surpass the Barca man's tally after facing Ludogorets on Dec. 9. Barca face a much trickier task against Paris Saint-Germain the night after, signalling an exciting back and forth is likely to ensue between the two players.     

Barcelona playmaker Xavi believes the tussle is "already stratospheric" and "a great spectacle for football," as reported by Al Primer Toque (h/t Corrigan). This is easily forgotten in pressure situations and is taken for granted by many, per B/R UK's Stefan Bienkowski:

Ronaldo will undoubtedly have a good go at cracking Messi's record against Basel. They now have years to duke it out, raising the bar together with simultaneous showings of brilliance. Whether you favour one or the other, this lasting impact will unite both players once their careers are over.