Lukaku vs Cristiano Ronaldo: How do they compare?

Cristiano Ronaldo is the five-goal top scorer at UEFA EURO 2020, while Belgium's Romelu Lukaku has hit three. At 36, Portugal's talisman has scored a European-record 109 international goals; the 28-year-old Lukaku has hit 63 for the Red Devils.

EURO2020.com's Belgium reporter Alyssa Saliou and Portugal reporter Carlos Machado explain how the two strikers measure up.

Left foot

Lukaku: 10 Ask fans in Serie A how Inter Milan won the 2020/21 title, and many will give the same answer: "Romelu's left foot."

Ronaldo: 8 It may be the Portuguese's so-called weaker foot, but it has still been responsible for 25 international goals!

Right foot

Lukaku: 8 Not as lethal as his left, perhaps, but Lukaku scores plenty with his right too.

Ronaldo: 10 If his left is 9 then there's only one way to go here. Ronaldo's right foot alone would make the top ten among Europe's all-time leading scorers.

Heading

Lukaku: 9 At 1.91m, Lukaku has a few centimetres' advantage on Ronaldo and has certainly never had any problem getting above defenders to score goals.

Ronaldo: 10 'Air Ronaldo' is one of many nicknames. He stands at 1.87m tall, can leap to a height of over 2.5m and his headers are like heat-seeking missiles.

Skills

Lukaku: 8 Lukaku is no show-off; you rarely catch him ball-juggling in training, but when it comes to dribbling past defenders and scoring, he has all the tricks he needs.

Ronaldo: 8 Time and changing roles have dulled the dribbling capacity that made him famous at Manchester United, but Ronaldo is one old dog that loves new tricks.

Strength

Lukaku: 10 Belgium fans call him 'Big Rom' with good reason.

Ronaldo: 8 That shredded body isn't just for show, as he proved against Germany.

Long-distance shooting

Lukaku: 7 The bulk of Lukaku's goals come from close range, but he has a decent shot on him from any distance.

Ronaldo: 7 He doesn't get a chance to shoot from range too often, but when he does...

Killer instinct

Lukaku: 10 Ronaldo has hit 109 goals in 178 internationals (an average of 0.61 per game). Lukaku's strike rate is better: 63 goals in 96 matches (0.66 per game). Need I say more?

Ronaldo: 9 You don't score over 700 professional goals by being hesitant and faint-hearted.

Free-kicks

Lukaku: 7 He has hit some superb free-kicks in his time, but Belgium have plenty of other options who might feel they can strike them better.

Ronaldo: 8 He has racked up over 50 during his career and perfected the knuckleball technique.

Penalties

Lukaku: 6 Lukaku hasn't always been at his best from the penalty spot, but Eden Hazard may step up if the opportunity arises.

Ronaldo: 9 There have been misses – 27 in all – but never when it matters most, such as his double against France: penalties number 138 and 139.

Defending

Lukaku: 7 If called on, Lukaku is no slouch; his body strength can keep opponents in check and his aerial ability can be deployed in defence as well as attack.

Ronaldo: 5 He is not going to feature too much in a high press, but at defensive set pieces that aerial ability comes to the fore.