Lionel Messi Brands Cristiano Ronaldo 'Incredible' Following Juventus' Win Over Atlético Madrid

Barcelona legend Lionel Messi has claimed Juventus' Cristiano Ronaldo put in an 'incredible' performance, during the side's 3-0 (3-2 agg.) Champions League win over Atlético Madrid on Tuesday.

The Portuguese sensation helped his side wrestle back the tie after losing the first leg 2-0 in Madrid, and he scored a stunning hat-trick to ensure his side progressed to the quarter-finals. The former Real Madrid man has been in typically potent form since joining Juve last summer, and has netted 24 goals in 36 matches for the Serie A giants.

Discussing Ronaldo's tie-changing performance against Los Colchoneros, via the Daily Mail, Messi said: "I thought that what happened with Cristiano and Juventus was incredible. I thought maybe Atletico would be stronger, but Juventus overwhelmed them and Cristiano had a magical night with the three goals."

With both Juventus and Barcelona now into the next round, there's every chance that the two sides could be drawn against one another in the quarter-final. This would set up a mouthwatering 'Ronaldo vs. Messi' clash - something which has been sorely missing from La Liga since the former made his big-money move to Serie A in 2018.

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On the domestic front, both side's look likely to clinch their respective league titles this season; Juventus are 18 points clear and unbeaten in the Italian top tier, while Barcelona have a slightly more modest seven point lead in La Liga, with Atléti looking to close the gap on Ernesto Valverde's side in the coming weeks.

In other news, Messi helped his side storm past Lyon into the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday evening, as he bagged two goals and two assists against the Ligue 1 side. The Argentine ace was is mesmeric form, and opened the scoring with an audacious, 'panenka' style penalty which left Lyon goalkeeper Anthony Lopes crestfallen.