What’s the story?
Luiz Felipe Scolari has revealed that he believes that Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo is the best footballer in the world. According to him, Lionel Messi and Ronaldo are very different players but he chooses the latter because he "has made himself the best in the world”.
In an interview with EFE, when asked who he would pick for his dream team, the Brazilian World Cup winning coach replied, “It depends. They have different characteristics. Ronaldo has made himself the best in the world. He has trained for it and has dedicated himself to this so he is a different type of player. Messi is all about the simplicity of playing football. He is a pure genius. Ronaldo's is a situation that he has imposed, but Messi's is not.”
In case you didn’t know…
Cristiano Ronaldo recently won the Ballon d’Or trophy and the FIFA World Player of the Year award for the year 2016 with Lionel Messi coming second.
The Messi vs Ronaldo debate has been the most debated topic in world football in the last decade and the football world has been divided into two halves – one which believes that Messi is the best for his natural talent, and the other which believes that Ronaldo is the best because of his hard work and dedication.
The heart of the matter
The former Brazil manager said that he believes in hard work and that is why he chose Ronaldo over Messi. He also said that Neymar can take over the mantle from Ronaldo and Messi “in two years time” when he will be at the same level as the two superstars.
When asked whether he would manage Real Madrid or Barcelona, Scolari said, “I think if I was invited to manage one of those teams, I would pick Real Madrid because they are more similar to my style of play than Barça.”
What’s next?
Both Ronaldo and Messi are at the peak of their careers. Football fans hope to see them at the top of their game for as long as possible. The race for this year’s best footballer accolades has already heated up with Messi starting 2017 with a bang.
Sportskeeda’s take
Football has never seen a rivalry quite like this one. The two footballers have shared the Ballon d’Or trophy since 2008, with Messi winning five times and Ronaldo winning four times. Messi is the more elegant footballer and his game is about simplicity. On the other hand, Ronaldo reached to the top through sheer determination and hard work.
Also Read: Lionel Messi is not better than Cristiano Ronaldo says Diego Maradona
It is easy to say that 2016 has been Ronaldo’s year largely whereas Messi has been, by his standards, a tad bit average. But the story might be very different in 2017. However, there is no arguing that we are all lucky to be alive at a time to witness both Ronaldo and Messi are playing at their very best.
