Cristiano Ronaldo touched down in Manchester on Sunday evening ahead of his much-anticipated return to Old Trafford - a match that will see the Real Madrid star go head-to-head with Ballon d'Or rival Lionel Messi.
Portugal face Argentina in an international friendly at Old Trafford on Tuesday night and Ronaldo is most certainly the star attraction.
The former Manchester United ace will make just his second appearance at his former stomping ground since leaving for Madrid in 2009 - and the presence of Barcelona's Messi means there will be a mouthwatering clash in prospects
Ronaldo, as he so often does, got Portugal out of a rather sticky hole on Friday when he scored the winner with just 18 minutes remaining against Armenia to ensure his nation remain in the hunt for qualification for the 2016 European Championship in France.
That goal also brought Ronaldo yet another record.
With that solitary strike, Ronaldo moved ahead of former Newcastle United, AC Milan and Denmark forward Jon Dahl Tomasson on to 23 goals in the European Championship (qualifying and tournament combined), ensuring he is now the leading scorer in the competition's history.
In what will be the 27th meeting between Ronaldo and Messi - who will make his second appearance on English soil in five days after starring in Argentina's 2-1 victory over Croatia at Upton Park last Thursday - English fans are sure to be dazzled by some remarkable skill.
Like Ronaldo, Messi stepped up when his nation needed him most and converted the winning penalty to complete a comeback victory for Argentina against Croatia on a night when Carlos Tevez made his return to the home of West Ham United.
But the little maestro looked relaxed as he sat on a treatment table during a recovery session in Manchester, sipping tea and talking to a friend.
He also posed for a photo with team-mates Javier Mascherano and Angel di Maria - who will play in extremely familiar surroundings on Tuesday.
In the 27 meetings between Ronaldo and Messi to date, the former has won seven and the latter 12, with eight draws in the other matches.
Neither will want to add a further blot to their copy book on Tuesday as they go in search of supremacy in their seemingly never-ending battle to be the world's best footballer.
Culled from the Daily Mail.Co.uk
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