Messi or Ronaldo?
It is a debate that has dominated the football scene for the past decade or so. Of course, when two players consistently play at the level they do, the comparisons that were going to be drawn were inevitable. Their meteoric rise has also seen the redefinition of the term ‘world-class’.
The two have been compared ever since Messi burst onto the scene during the 2007/08 season with Barcelona, with Ronaldo lighting up the Premier League with Manchester United at that point in time. Invariably, both players have won a significant amount of trophies with their respective clubs as well as a plethora of individual honours, most notably passing the Ballon d’Or award amongst themselves since 2008.
A distinct lack of international trophies however, is what apparently kept them from being mentioned in the same breath as the likes of Diego Maradona and Pele. With Ronaldo recently captaining Portugal to the European Championships and Messi so famously losing in the finals of the Copa America Centenario this year, the debate has shifted in favour of the Portuguese superstar.
But why do we need to choose? Why not both?
Here, let’s take a look at 5 reasons as to why we need to end this fruitless debate once and for all.
#1 Two greatest players of our generation and arguably the greatest of all time
We have been truly blessed to be living in a time where we get to watch two players rewrite history as we know it.
When you think of either of the two, you realise there probably aren’t enough adjectives in the English language capable of doing justice to the feats they have managed to achieve. If asked to describe them, you’d probably throw around words such as phenomenal, extraordinary, exceptional, out of this world, mesmerising, silky, skillful, and unparalleled and a whole lot more and well, you’d be absolutely right.
By virtue of their unique skillset, you can argue that Ronaldo made it because of his athleticism, power and sheer determination to succeed, whereas Messi is the more naturally gifted one, but yet someone who had to hone his craft to perfection to reach the level he is at currently. But neither achievement can be depreciated.
We as a people have become desensitised to records being broken. It’s easy to forget that there was a time when it stood for decades and the fact that is has become so commonplace now speaks volumes of their quality and doggedness.
When their time does come to an end, the entire world will quite possibly reminisce of them as having been the greatest of all time.
#2 Never again will two players of such immense quality be playing at the same time, let alone the same league
In the course of the beautiful game’s rich history, there have been many who can quite justifiably throw down the gauntlet as being the greatest ever to grace the football pitch.
Pele won 3 World Cups with Brazil, a feat which will arguably never be repeated again, Johan Cruyff, possibly the most naturally gifted player to ever play the game, Diego Maradona single-handedly grabbed Argentina by the scruff of their neck and led them to world cup glory. Beyond these few, there are also the likes of Zinedine Zidane, Franz Beckenbauer, Michel Platini, Ronaldinho, Alfredo Di Stefano, to name a few.
But what’s common amongst all of them, is that most did not play in the same era, let alone the same league.
We are at a unique point in time when two of the greatest of our generation are fighting it out in the same league; what makes it more fascinating is that they’re at opposite ends of one of the oldest and greatest rivalries in football, Real Madrid and Barcelona.
This has made the ‘El Clasico’ more fiercely contested and much more entertaining. The quality of play from both teams is at a much higher level and each match bears certain unpredictability about it.
There may be only a few more years of both of them fighting it out in La Liga, with their bodies being able to bear only so much physical strain, them leaving is an eventuality that cannot be avoided.
Spend these years enjoying what they have to offer.
#3 Ronaldo and Messi have mutual respect for the other
The rivalry between Messi and Ronaldo has always been blown out of proportion by both sets of fans as well as the media, who try their best to create a divide between the two.
But with both superstars having repeatedly come out and said that they share a mutual respect for one another and their rivalry does not amount to anything beyond the pitch, would it be so hard for their fans to follow suit?
Both have spent a vast majority of their playing career in direct comparison to one another. Much of this comes down to the obvious rivalry and bad blood between Barcelona and Real Madrid, with both having gone toe-to-toe for league titles and cup-ties over the years as well as individual honours such as the Pichichi, European Golden Boot and the Ballon d’Or.
Despite this, the talk of a big rivalry is nothing but a media construct and the work of social media trolls, with both having immense respect for one another.
#4 They push each other to become better players
Let’s assume for one second that we all lived in a vacuum - that Messi and Ronaldo were born in two completely different eras. Do you honestly think either would have achieved the same dizzying heights that they have today?
Sure, there is an argument to say that they might have, but there is strong indication that they have pushed each other to become better players. Considering how supremely talented they are, we can assume that had they been born in a different generation, they’d have been the greatest at that point in time. But without a significant amount of competition, it may well have led them to rest on their laurels and not try improving what they currently are.
Ronaldo confirmed as much in his recent biopic with him having said, “I look at him not as a rival, but as a person who makes me a better player and I make him a better player.”
So, we have the 2 greatest footballers of all time and an amazing rivalry to boot; one that has irreversibly shaped how their respective careers have panned out.
#5 Enjoy their presence in the game instead of debating about an issue that is pointless
Social Media pages attributed to football can often be vile places; a cesspool of poorly thought out insults and jabs directed at players and opposition fans. The top of this list usually composes of 2 types of comments, “Messi > Ronaldo” and “Ronaldo > Messi”.
Every post on Ronaldo carries with it insults aimed at Messi, with the most popular one of late being “At least Ronaldo doesn’t cry and retire when he loses a match.”
Similarly, each post on Messi is filled with comments of Ronaldo being arrogant, not a team-player and the likes.
These are two professionals who ply their trade at the very highest level. The pressure on them must immense at all times, with their every action under considerable scrutiny and their faults often dissected under a microscope. It’s hard to remember sometimes, that they are, after all, human beings, that they too are prone to mistakes and emotional breakdowns.
The argument of which one is greater is a pointless one. It is subjective in its entirety. With both having contributed massively to the growth of football in recent times, the argument also feels quite hollow.
Instead of enjoying their presence within the game, we spend all our time needlessly bickering amongst ourselves, and if we don’t stop, we will definitely live to regret it.
