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Cristiano Ronaldo Has Been Voted The Greatest Player Of All Time In Fan Tournament

Cristiano Ronaldo Has Been Voted The Greatest Player Of All Time In Fan Tournament

He's beaten out 15 other men...

Daniel Marland

Daniel Marland

Cristiano Ronaldo has been named the greatest footballer of all time in a fan tournament featuring some of the game's biggest names.

Spanish publication MARCA set up the 16-man showdown which saw huge names such as Diego Maradona and Zinedine Zidane go against one another with progression based on fan votes.

The final inevitably ended up being Ronaldo vs longtime rival Lionel Messi with the Juventus forward coming out on top.

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PA

Check out the entire bracket below with winners indicated by bold text.

ROUND OF 16

Lionel Messi (78%) vs Ferenc Puskas (22%)

Eusebio (17%) vs Alfredo Di Stefano (83%)

Franz Beckenbauer (17%) vs Ronaldo Nazario (83%)

Michel Platini (8%) vs Pele (92%)

Diego Maradona (60%) vs Ronaldinho (40%)

Lev Yashin (8%) vs Johan Cruyff (92%)

Zinedine Zidane (82%) vs George Best (18%)

Paolo Maldini (27%) vs Cristiano Ronaldo (73%)

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PA

QUARTER-FINALS

Lionel Messi (70%) vs Alfredo Di Stefano (30%)

Ronaldo Nazario (53%) vs Pele (47%)

Diego Maradona (67%) vs Johan Cruyff (33%)

Zinedine Zidane (44%) vs Cristiano Ronaldo (56%)

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PA

SEMI-FINALS

Lionel Messi (52%) vs Ronaldo Nazario (48%)

Diego Maradona (41%) vs Cristiano Ronaldo (59%)

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PA

THIRD PLACE PLAY-OFF

Ronaldo Nazario (51%) vs Diego Maradona (49%)

FINAL

Lionel Messi (46%) vs Cristiano Ronaldo (54%)

OVERALL WINNER - CRISTIANO RONALDO

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PA

It must be said that the tournament being ran by a Spanish paper has lead to players who have played in Spain's top division being dominant.

Paolo Maldini never stood a chance against 'CR7' in the opening round while Pele's elimination in the quarter-finals is the big shock.

The full tournament. (Image
MARCA)

Ronaldo Nazario came out on top ahead of Diego Maradona in a tight third place play-off.

But it's Ronaldo's big win over Messi in the final that is the big talking point.

It's a debate that has raged for years with stars past and present being probed for their opinion.

Pele has recently been asked who he believes to be the better player and he gave his vote to Ronaldo over Messi.

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PA

"Today the best player in the world is Cristiano Ronaldo," Pele told YouTube channel Pilhado per Daily Mail.

"I think he's the best, because he's more consistent, but you can't forget about [Lionel] Messi, of course, but he's not a striker."

The fans who voted in this poll also feel similar to the 79-year-old.

Who do you think is the greatest player of all time?

Sound off in the comments below.

Featured Image Credit: PA/FootyRenders

Topics: Football, Lionel Messi, Diego Maradona, Zinedine Zidane, Pele, Cristiano Ronaldo