Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo both played for Barcelona and Real Madrid in La Liga for many years. On Thursday, Messi’s PSG and the Riyadh All-Star XI, which is made up of Saudi Pro League stars, played an exhibition game against each other.
Both players scored in a match that was full of action, with PSG winning 5–4.
In the third minute, Messi scored the first goal of the game. Ronaldo scored from the penalty spot in the 34th minute to tie the game. He scored again right before halftime to make it 2-2 before the teams went to the locker rooms. Sergio Ramos gave PSG a 3–2 lead early in the second half. After an hour of play, both Messi and Ronaldo were replaced.
After the game, Ronaldo used Twitter to say how happy he was to be back on the field and to see “some old friends.”
Ronaldo moved to Saudi Arabia after a very tense end to his time at Manchester United, where he was sent to the bench before the team and he agreed to part ways in November. Since he no longer plays in Europe, Ronaldo, 37, and Messi, 35, may not play together again after Thursday.
The two players have won a total of 12 Ballon d’Or awards between them. They last played against each other in the Champions League in 2020, when Ronaldo’s team, Juventus, played against Messi’s team, Barcelona.
