Soccer rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi had a massive weekend in which they continued to impressively affect their respective teams' fortunes.

After their international breaks, in which both players had mixed results for their respective countries, the two looked extremely excited to head back to their clubs and continue to dominate the competition.

First up was Ronaldo, who has scored in nine straight games for Real Madrid. Would he continue his hot streak for the team in which he had collected 17 goals in 11 matches for Madrid on the season in all competitions? Could he add to his 13 Spanish League tallies?

The answer was a resounding "Yes". And at this point, he might as well be crowned with his second straight Ballon d'Or, as well.

Ronaldo was terrific as Madrid dismantled Levante on the road. He scored the opener on a penalty, making it 14 goals in seven games. But he was far from finished. Ronaldo put the game out of reach with his 15th of the season when he took a pass from Isco and dribbled past two defenders before unleashing a rocket that nestled in the far post. It was goal that exuded confidence and should undoubtedly keep Ronaldo hot heading into the midweek clash with Liverpool and Clasico next weekend. He had 59 touches on the night and connected on 84 percent of his passes. He continues to look increasingly unselfish in some instances around the penalty area, showing some solidarity with his teammates.

Hours later, it was Messi's turn to respond. And what a response it was. Messi continued his work as a distributor for Barcelona. He had 106 touches and completed 88 percent of his passing, including an assist for Xavi's opening tally. He eventually added his seventh goal of the season, continuing to cement himself as Barcelona's main playmaker.

But there is one thing to consider when looking at the two players. Despite Messi's transformation into more of a playmaker, he had eight shots in the match (six of them on target) and only converted on one of them. Ronaldo had seven shots on goal and only four of them on target. He converted two goals. Granted, one of them was on a penalty, but he put two past the keeper with fewer chances.

Messi has not struggled to score when given that many chances in the past, so this match speaks volumes about his lack of luck on the scoreboard.

Now, the two turn their attention to two crucial Champions League fixtures and then the hotly-anticipated head-to-head matchup.

Who Wins?

Entering this week, Ronaldo held a 3-2 week thanks to his dominant scoring form. And it seems that this week he continues to be a step ahead of his rival in terms of scoring. Both players are undoubtedly their teams' respective MVPs, but Ronaldo's goal-scoring pace is unrivaled, even by Messi. In his best year, the Argentine put up 50 goals in 38 Spanish League matches. At his current rate, assuming he does not suffer injuries, Ronaldo will finish the year with over 70 goals.

That is unlikely to happen, but even if Ronaldo's current goal scoring were to dip slightly, he could easily blow Messi's memorable 50-goal mark out of the water. It might not even be close when all is said and done. Most importantly, Ronaldo is leading his team to victory and Madrid's looks unstoppable. Ronaldo now holds a convincing 4-2 edge over his rival.

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