Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's woes laid bare by West Ham's Europa League heroics

Although still very much world class, it's fair to say that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are far from their peak as they move into the latter stages of their careers.

Messi may still be featuring in a talented Paris Saint Germain squad, and Ronaldo is doing his best to inspire success at Manchester United, although this season has been a nightmare. West Ham on the other hand are in dreamland as they've just made the Europa League semi-final with a statement 3-0 victory away to Lyon.

Messi and Ronaldo may have a combined total of nine European cups, with both winning the UEFA Super Cup on numerous occasions too, but their powers have faded in recent years. And a telling stat may have proven their decline at the top level in recent years.

It was a stunning performance by West Ham who turned up in Lyon with the odds firmly stacked against them. They were held by Lyon to a 1-1 draw at the London Stadium, and a controversial Aaron Cresswell red card ruled him out of the second leg.

To make matters worse, Kurt Zouma pulled up against Brentford and became unavailable for the trip to France, but West Ham punished an underwhelming Lyon side to progress. The opening goal was scored by Craig Dawson, who bundled in from close range following a Pablo Fornals corner to spark wild celebrations in the away end.

But his heroics will come as an embarrassment to Messi and Ronaldo, as now Dawson has scored more goals in the quarter-finals of European competitions in the 2020s than Messi and Ronaldo have between them. Both stars couldn't even make the quarter-finals this season, but they have been firing blanks since the turn of the decade.

Messi's last success in Europe came in 2015, as Barcelona started to rapidly decline, and