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What's the story?
Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann has given his verdict on the debate surrounding Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona ace Lionel Messi and has also named the most difficult opponent he has faced so far.
Also See: La Liga Top Scorers
In case you didn't know...
Greizmann had just come out of a phenomenal year in his career, having won the Europa League with Atletico Madrid in May and the FIFA World Cup with his home country France.
The Frenchman was also voted in third place at the 2018 edition of the Ballon d'Or behind Real Madrid midfielder and winner Luka Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The World Cup winner finished ahead of Messi who was infamously snubbed from the top three and was voted in fifth place.
Griezmann was not too happy at losing out on the coveted prize again and voiced his frustrations openly, saying (via Goal), "When I learned [I didn’t win], you didn't want to be at home with me the first two days (laugh)."
"No, it's a great pride to be on the podium, to be a world champion."
“I'm counting on the team-mates in the club and the national team to be in Luka's place in the future."
"I won an Europa League, a World Cup – what else I have to do, I do not know."
The heart of the matter
Griezmann has now made his pick on football's most controversial debate stating that he considers both Messi and Ronaldo as the best players of all time while also name-dropping the likes of Zinedine Zidane, Pele and Maradona.
Speaking to Oh My Goal, the forward said, "Best player of all time? Well you know it depends on the era but I would say Messi or Cristiano."
"I never saw how Pele or Maradona played. It's a tough question. Everyone has their own style."
"There's also Zidane. Zidane won the World Cup. Messi and Ronaldo never have."
When asked about his most difficult opponent, Griezmann heaped praise on Ajax star Frenkie de Jong, who is set to join Barcelona this summer.
"I would say de Jong from Ajax Amsterdam because I tried to put pressure on him and never succeeded."
What's next?
Atletico Madrid recently registered a thumping win over Juventus in the opening leg of their Champions League Round of 16 fixture but will now look to La Liga where they will hope to catch up to table-toppers Barcelona when they face Real Sociedad on Sunday.
