Fact-checking Messi and Ronaldo stats

The user shared a statement in Chinese about Messi scoring 6 goals and 6 assists in the World Cup against European teams, while Ronaldo has 0 goals and 0 assists against South American teams. It seems they might want me to comment on or fact-check this. I should verify these stats: Messi's total World Cup record is around 13 goals and possibly 8 assists. It’s worth recalling the all-time assist leaders—maybe Diego Maradona and Thomas Müller also had 8 assists.Analyzing Messi's World Cup stats

I think Messi has around 8 assists total as of 2022. Now, if I'm figuring out his stats against European teams, I need to recall specific matches. For example, in 2006, he had 1 goal and 1 assist against Serbia and Montenegro. There were no stats against Germany that year. I remember he assisted Demichelis against Greece, and in 2014, he scored against Bosnia and assisted Di María against Switzerland. In 2018, he missed a penalty against Iceland and scored against France.Summarizing Messi's stats against European teams

I remember Messi had 2 assists in the 4-3 loss to France, one to Mercado and another to Agüero. He also had an assist against Nigeria. In 2022, he scored a penalty and assisted Álvarez against Croatia, plus scored and assisted Molina against the Netherlands. So when I tally his overall performance against European teams: 1 goal and 1 assist against Serbia and Montenegro, a possible assist against Greece, 1 goal against Bosnia, and various contributions in other matches. Did he assist against France, or just score?Clarifying Messi's assists against European teams

It turns out that Messi did not get an official assist for Di María's goal, as it was actually assisted by Mac Allister. So, tallying up his contributions against European teams: in 2006 against Serbia, he had 1 goal and 1 assist; against Germany, it was 0-0. For the match against Greece in 2010, I think he might have assisted Demichelis, but I'm not sure if FIFA would credit Messi with that since his shot was saved before Palermo scored. It's a bit complicated!