Cristiano Ronaldo has named a player who can rival himself and Lionel Messi in the ‘GOAT’ debate.
Ronaldo and Messi are considered two of the greatest players of all time, and some believe they are indeed the best players in football history.
Others will bring the likes of Pele, Diego Maradona and Johan Cruyff into the fray, while older fans might even bring the likes of Alfredo Di Stefano and Ferenc Puskas also joined in.
It’s a debate that fans will never universally agree on – but everyone at least agrees that Ronaldo and Messi are part of it.
I replied, “Probably.
“He and (Zinedine) Zidane are probably the guys I used to play and fight with.
“Messi is an amazing player, he is magical. As a person, we have been on this stage together for 16 years. Imagine 16 years together.”
“So I have a good relationship with him. I’m not his friend, I mean a friend is the person who’s in your house with you on the phone. No, but it’s like a team-mate.
“He’s a guy I respect a lot and he talks about me all the time.”
As a player, he is considered one of the greatest midfielders of all time. I combine great passing and dribbling ability with an eye for the spectacular.
His last performance as a player was leading the French national team to the 2006 World Cup final, but was sent off for head-butting Italian player Marco Materazzi.
After the final, he retired from club and international football, ending a career that featured more than 800 appearances and more than 150 goals for club and country.
Zidane won the Champions League and La Liga titles with Real Madrid, the Serie A title with Juventus, and the World Cup and European Cup titles with France. In 1998, he won the Golden Globe Award.
In 2017, the Frenchman named Ronaldo his greatest player of all time.
He explained (quoted by ESPN): “There are many players who have made history at this club (Real Madrid). But no one has done what he has done – the statistics show that.
“What he’s done is impressive. So I think yes (he’s the best in history).
“You know I think Cristiano is much better (than me), even though I had a good career.”