A new study has sent shockwaves in Spanish football particularly among Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi’s fans. There have been endless debates regarding the greater of the two but according to a new study conducted by the Center for Investigations into the History and Statistics of Spanish Football, none of them is the greatest in La Liga.
The study covered the 85-year-old history of the Spanish league and some of the criteria used to separate the players included assists, rebounds, fouls, goals, appearances, assists and so much more. According to the study, Real Madrid legend Raul Gonzalez is La Liga’s greatest player ever.
The 39-year-old (pictured below) joined Real Madrid in 1992 and left in 2010, having scored 228 goals in 550 league appearances. He won the Intercontinental Cup, Champions League, Super Cup, La Liga and Spanish Super Cup with Los Blancos during his reign at the Santiago Bernabeu. 
Barcelona legend Cesar Rodriguez comes second in the list with Athletic Bilbao fan-favorite Telmo Zarra sealing the top three slot. Surprisingly, Lionel Messi comes fourth in the list while former Sporting Gijon and Barcelona player Enrique Castro, famously known as ‘Quini’ seals the top five slot. Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo comes a distant 23rd due to the lower number of minutes played in La Liga compared to his opponents. But at least, the ex-Man Utd man managed to floor other La Liga greats such as David Villa who ranks 32nd, Xavi Hernandez who sits at the 49th spot and Iker Casillas who takes the 62nd slot.
Here is how Messi, Ronaldo and Raul compare to each other in La Liga:
Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
240 games
261 goals
8 major titles
Messi (Barcelona)
353 appearances
316 goals
29 major trophies
Raul (Real Madrid)
550 appearances
228 goals
16 major trophies
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