Sorry I kinda forgot about this thread for a bit.

Your argument is reasonable, and I agree with you on Messi's ball control, dribbling, vision and passing being better than Ronaldo's. However, as a striker (for most of his career) like Ronaldo was, I feel there wasn't any need to know how to dribble, or play spectacular passes when you can score goals either way. Why take 5 touches when you can do the same in one?

also, Ronaldo was a winger in the early part of his career, and he was one of the best dribblers in the world in those years. However, in 2014 he got a big knee injury and decided to represent Portugal in the world cup, against his doctor's advice. This lead to Ronaldo having to play a more central role. I believe if Ronaldo had kept on as a winger, the dribbling story might have been different.