Doing What They Do Best: Scoring Goals

The weekend of Jan. 26 saw Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi score seven goals between them.

Whatever else you want from your team, whatever else the attackers are expected to contribute, you know if you have players like these two in your team, then you've got a good chance of winning any given match.

So far in 2013, Messi scored a penalty against Espanyol, three goals in three games against Malaga, an early goal against Real Sociedad and four goals most recently against Osasuna.

Nine goals in six appearances so far in 2013.

Ronaldo has followed suit with a brace against Sociedad, a cup hat-trick against Celta Vigo, a double blank against Valencia in two cup games, another two goals against the same opposition in the league and a hat-trick against Getafe.

10 goals in six appearances.

While Messi has started the calendar year in more consistent goal-scoring form, hitting the back of the net in every match he has played, Ronaldo has been dominating the games in which he does score.

Less than a month into the new year, Ronaldo already has two hat-tricks to his name—and Messi hit four in his most recent outing.

Between the two, they have 19 goals in January alone. That is more than every single player in the top five European leagues have managed to score since the start of the entire season, with the exception of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani.