El Clasico: 5 reasons why Ronaldo will outshine Messi

#4 Proving doubters wrong

Ronaldo has to prove his doubters wrong time and time again

The one thing that Cristiano Ronaldo has had to face in his entire career far more than any other player in the world is doubters. You can go all around the world and find a place where there is no oxygen, but you will still not find a place that hasn’t got a Ronaldo doubter.

Indeed, just after winning the 5th Ballon d’Or, Gremio coach and compatriot, Renato Gaucho, who himself was a good player in his time, didn’t hold back on boasting about his qualities as a player, claiming that he stands by what he said earlier in the year that he was better than Cristiano Ronaldo is now.

"I maintain that [the comments made earlier in the year]. That's why I admire Cristiano. He's a true champion. He is one of the greatest players in the world, with great qualities," Renato said.

"Every year he tries to break his own record. I really admire that in a player. He is also very generous off the pitch, which I admire a lot too.

"But it's very easy for those who didn't see me play to only praise Cristiano Ronaldo. I applaud him in every way.

"To know who played better, you would have to talk with a lot of people who also saw me play.

"So, my opinion remains the same. I admire him a lot, but that's my opinion. Everyone has their own opinion, I have mine too."

Indeed, after he spat those words from his mouth, World Cup winning former Brazil manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari backed his compatriot.

"I think Renato was a better player but Cristiano is more of a goalscorer," said Scolari.

The original comments of Renato were even more demeaning to the Portuguese.

"I have no doubt [that I was better than Cristiano is]. I would like to see him play in the teams I played for, without being paid for three or four months and to continue being a champion like I did. I would like to have played at Real Madrid, with games once a week on wonderful pitches and with the teammates he has."

"Ronaldo is a great player, but not as versatile as I was. He is very strong but he doesn't have much technique. This generation hasn't seen me play, whoever did get the chance to see me, has a different opinion," he continued.

And this is just a minuscule of the number of things he has to listen to even after winning so many things in his career—which is why he will be motivated to play even better. Not that he owes them anything—he has achieved everything there is to—but who doesn’t love slapping their critics in the face?