“The difference with me" - When Cristiano Ronaldo highlighted why he was better than Lionel Messi 

Cristiano Ronaldo once explained why he believed he was better than his archrival Lionel Messi. The two legends are unanimously considered among the greatest players in the history of football.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been pitted against each other since their rise to stardom. Their rivalry reached its peak between 2009 and 2018 when they played for archrival sides, Barcelona and Real Madrid, respectively. During this period, the two legends clashed against each other at least twice each season, leading to a massive rise in popularity for Clásicos. The duo have won a record 13 Ballons d'Or together, with Messi having a record eight and Ronaldo five.

In a 2019 interview on DAZN's series The Making Of, Cristiano Ronaldo explained why he believes he's different from Lionel Messi. The Portuguese icon said (via GOAL):

"In the case of Messi, he is an excellent player. Not only for the Ballons d'Or he has won but for also being a player who was always at the top year after year, just like me. The difference with me is that I've played for different clubs, and I also won the Champions League with different clubs. I was the top scorer in the Champions League six times in a row."

Ronaldo further elaborated on his iconic rivalry with Messi and added:

"Obviously, I have not seen such a rivalry between two players at the top of the mountain for so many years. There are great players that I respect who have three, four or, at most, five years at their peak. Ten years? I've never seen that. I have never seen players, as we say in Portugal: 'breaking stones every year', scoring 40 or 50 goals, winning titles, always being up there."

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi both left European football around two years ago, but continue to remain among the best players in the world. Messi is focusing on leading Inter Miami in the FIFA Club World Cup after qualifying for the round of 16. Meanwhile, Ronaldo signed a new contract with Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr this month after winning his second UEFA Nations League with Portugal.

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"We're not friends"- When Lionel Messi spoke about his iconic rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo and Messi (L to R) - Source: Getty

In an interview with DS Sports, Lionel Messi shared his thoughts on his iconic rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo. The legendary Argentine's comments came after he scored in Inter Miami's 2-1 win over Porto in the FIFA Club World Cup group stage. He said (via Sports Illustrated):

"I have a lot of respect and admiration for Cristiano Ronaldo and for the career he's had and continues to have, because he's still competing at the highest level. he competition with him was on the pitch. Each of us wanted to do the best for our team. Obviously, as always, everything stayed on the field."

He said:

"Off the pitch, we are two normal people. We're not friends, obviously, because we don't spend time together, but we've always treated each other with a lot of respect."

Despite their rivalry on the pitch, both legends have officially spoken about each other with respect. The two icons last faced each other in January 2023 in a Riyadh All Stars vs Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) game. The Portuguese talisman was at Al-Nassr, while Messi represented the Parisiens. The French side won the game 5-4.

Edited by Pratyasha Sarkar