"Probably he will be the best" - Dimitar Berbatov snubs Cristiano Ronaldo, picks legendary Manchester United forward in 5-a-side team

Dimitar Berbatov snubbed his former Manchester United teammate Cristiano Ronaldo in his 5-a-side team. He picked Wayne Rooney above the Portugal legend as the striker of the team.

Berbatov appeared on the recent episode of Rio Ferdinand Presents, a podcast by United legend Rio Ferdinand, published on October 28. Towards the end, he was asked to pick a 5-a-side team comprising the players he had played with. Moreover, he didn't have to choose a goalkeeper.

The former Bulgaria striker first picked Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand in defense. He had shared the pitch 109 times with Vidic for Manchester United, and also combined for two goals. Meanwhile, he shared the pitch 76 times with Ferdinand.

In midfield, Berbatov first picked Paul Scholes, with whom he shared the pitch 77 times and combined for five goals. He also picked James Rodriguez, with whom he played 13 times for AS Monaco, combining for five goals.

In the striker position, the former Manchester United striker picked Wayne Rooney. Mentioning Cristiano Ronaldo, Berbatov said:

"I can say easily, Ronaldo, right? But, Ronaldo, for me, is on the big pitch, where he can express everything. In the small spaces, probably Wazza [Rooney] will be the best."

Berbatov shared the pitch 99 times with Rooney at Manchester United, combining for 12 goals. Meanwhile, he combined for five goals with Cristiano Ronaldo in 39 appearances together.

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Former Manchester United coach believes Cristiano Ronaldo has bigger priority than reaching 1000-goal mark

Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored 950 goals for club and country in his career. He is the top scorer of all time in men's football and could become the first player to reach 1000 goals.

However, former Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen believes the Portugal captain will be more keen to win the FIFA World Cup next year. He said that if given a choice, the 40-year-old would swap the 1000 goals for a World Cup trophy. He said:

"Cristiano Ronaldo would swap his 1000 goals for World Cup glory, I think he would. The World Cup is exceptional. Don't get me wrong, Portugal has exceptionally good players but I tell you what, it's bloody hard to win the World Cup. Just go back to the World Cup final with Argentina and France. "It ended up 3-3 with two exceptional players, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, both performing unbelievably. To be honest, Portugal will definitely say, ‘Listen, we've got possibly one of the best squads to go into a World Cup for years,’ but it's a big ask."

Ronaldo has won the UEFA Euro and the UEFA Nations League with Portugal, but has yet to get his hands on the World Cup in five attempts.

Edited by Aditya Singh