"This was true horror" - Alessandro Florenzi names 36-year-old star as toughest ever opponent ahead of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo

Alessandro Florenzi has named Ivan Perisic as a tougher opponent than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He highlighted his ability to play well on both feet, labeling it a "horror" to defend against.

Florenzi faced Cristiano Ronaldo six times in his career, winning once and losing five times. He also faced Lionel Messi six times, winning two, losing two, and drawing two. Ronaldo and Messi are widely considered the two greatest players of all time.

However, Florenzi named Ivan Perisic as a tougher opponent, saying (h/t SportItalia):

"I have played against Ronaldo and Messi – they are truly deserving of great respect. But the most difficulty I ever had was against another player – I am talking about Perišić. He could easily go to the right or left – it made no difference to him. And he never stopped moving. This was true horror."

Florenzi and Perisic faced off seven times, with five matches being draws and each managing one win.

Ivan Perisic has played for numerous clubs, like Inter Milan, Bayern Munich, Tottenham Hotspur, and Borussia Dortmund in his career. He is still going strong at 36 for PSV Eindhoven. He has scored four goals and provided 10 assists in 22 games across competitions for them this season.

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Juventus legend explains why young players should follow Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi

Former Juventus midfielder Claudio Marchisio recently shared his thoughts on Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He heaped praise on both of them, but said that young players should follow in the footsteps of the Portuguese. He said that while Messi was born with great talent, Ronaldo worked really hard for his achievements.

Marchisio said:

“Follow Cristiano Ronaldo's example. If you have to find something in a player to become great champions, follow an example like his and not like Lionel Messi's. Why? He was already a star, but he had to build himself even more. He worked very hard to get where he is, the other [Messi] was a talent blessed by the Lord, who hardly even needed to train.” “The best thing about Ronaldo, he adapts. He adapted at 18/19, he adapted at Real Madrid, he adapted at Juve. He’s always adapting. He’s adapting now in Saudi, he’s adapted with Portugal. That’s why, for me, he is the best player in the world. I don’t think - no offence to Messi, he’s an unbelievable talent, but he’s never really had to adapt all these different parts of his game. Ronaldo, when he first came [to United], couldn’t head the ball!” he added.

Cristiano Ronaldo has played in five different leagues in his professional career, while Lionel Messi has played in three.

Edited by Aditya Singh