Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo share unwanted career-first at Euro 2024 and Copa America

In a surprising turn of events, soccer legends Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have seen their impressive goalscoring streaks at international tournaments come to an end .

Both players, representing Argentina and Portugal respectively in the Copa America and Euro 2024, failed to score in the group stage of a major tournament for the first time in their nearly two-decade careers playing for their countries.

Despite his scoring drought, Messi's performance has not hindered Argentina's dominant run in the Copa America. The Inter Miami midfielder provided a crucial assist to Lautauro Martinez in Argentina's opener, securing a 2-0 victory over Canada.

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He was also instrumental in Argentina's narrow 1-0 win over Chile, with five key passes and a 94 percent pass accuracy score. Messi, an eight-time Ballon d'Or winner, chose to sit out Argentina's final group stage game against Peru, with the team already having secured first place in Group A.

Despite his absence, the team controlled 75 percent of possession and cruised to a 2-0 victory, finishing group play with a perfect nine points.

Ronaldo and his Portuguese team had a slightly more challenging journey on the European stage. The Saudi Pro League star was visibly frustrated with his performance, refereeing decisions, and perhaps the limitations of age.

In Portugal's opening game against the Czech Republic, the 39-year-old striker nearly helped his team escape defeat by setting up Diogo Jota with a header that hit the woodwork. However, a VAR review determined Ronaldo was offside.

A last-minute goal from Francisco Conceicao helped Portugal secure a win over the Czechs. The team then easily defeated Turkey in their second match, with Ronaldo contributing to the 3-0 victory with his seventh career assist at the Euros - a record for any player.

Like Argentina, Portugal secured their place in the knockout stages after just two games. While eight outfield players chose to rest for the final group-stage match against Georgia, Ronaldo was one of the few who returned to the starting lineup.

The Portuguese side seemed disjointed, and Ronaldo received a yellow card for an angry outburst at the referee following a shirt pull in the penalty area.

Ronaldo ended the game with just a single shot on target, no successful dribbles and a somewhat sloppy passing effort, which allowed Georgia to secure an unexpected 2-0 victory and progress from the group stages for the first time in history. The football superstar faces a challenging task of scoring his first Euro 2024 goal on Monday as Portugal takes on Jan Oblak and Slovenia in the Round of 16.

On the other hand, Messi and Argentina are waiting to find out their quarterfinal opponent as they will face the second-placed team from Group B, which could be Venezuela, Mexico or Ecuador.