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Cristiano Ronaldo was so unhappy with Rio Ferdinand's debate about Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe last season, that he text his former Manchester United teammate before he was even off air.
You'd barely be able to believe it considering the hype around their transfers this summer, but, there was a point last season when Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were old news.
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It was mid February when Mbappe bagged a hat-trick for PSG against Messi and Barcelona in the Champions League last 16 first leg, and suddenly there was talk the torch was being passed.
A day later and Haaland bagged two goals in Borussia Dortmund's win over Sevilla and Ronaldo was failing to help Juventus as they lost to Porto.
It led to BT Sport talking about which of Mbappe and Haaland had a bigger future and which one was going to dominate European football, but that wasn't for Ronaldo's taste.
Speaking to the Independent, Ferdinand revealed that whilst he was still on air, he got a Whatsapp message from his former teammate saying, "It’s not over," pretty conclusive stuff.
Two weeks later Mbappe scored once again as PSG knocked Barca out, Haaland grabbed two more to take Dortmund through and Ronaldo was even blamed for the free kick that saw Juve go out of the competition.
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Messi of course is now playing alongside Mbappe and Ronaldo is back at United, as the pair with nine Champions League titles between them hunt down more success.
Speaking about the text he got, and the two greats being compared to the two new boys on the block and their transfers, Ferdinand said, "It’s more about themselves. I don’t think they care about Mbappe and Haaland," he told the Independent.
"They’re more interested in their own legacies, continuing their success. They were at clubs who had very little chance of winning the Champions League in Juventus and Barcelona, in the situations they were in.
"They’ve both joined clubs now with definite potential to actually challenge in Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain."
The story does further highlight that Ronaldo and Ferdinand still have a good relationship, something that was made clear in the five time Ballon d'Or winner's move back to Old Trafford.
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Rio was straight on his phone when it looked like Ronaldo might move instead to United's rivals Manchester City, and it clearly worked.
After being warned last season, it'll be interesting to see if the former England centre back says anything about Haaland and Mbappe taking over this year.
Featured Image Credit: PA/BT SportTopics: Football, Premier League, Champions League, Rio Ferdinand, Cristiano Ronaldo, Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi