Five Legends Who All Named Same 'Football GOAT' Out Of Lionel Messi And Cristiano Ronaldo

Legendary ex-Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson and Roma icon Francesco Totti are amongst the figures who branded Cristiano Ronaldo as the GOAT over Lionel Messi.

Juventus superstar Ronaldo, 35, and Barcelona captain Messi, 33, are widely regarded as two of the best footballers of all time alongside the likes of Pele and Diego Maradona.

But both of the world-class stars have been frequently placed in the hotly debated topic of who is 'most deserving' of the accolade of 'football's GOAT.'

Ferguson, who brought Ronaldo to Old Trafford in 2003, insisted that the Portuguese forward "has everything" and "could play for Stockport County and score a hat-trick."

Totti also entered the debate and branded Ronaldo, Messi and Neymar as "three footballing aliens," but he added that "Ronaldo is ahead of the others."

Joining Ferguson and Totti in the Ronaldo corner is Roberto Carlos, who argued that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's dedication to improving puts him ahead of Messi.

The Real Madrid legend explained: "Cristiano has worked to improve. When you talk about the Ballon d'Or or any other prize, it's not just any person who votes, it's people who know football, who follow the stats of the players and pick the best in the world.

"I watch him train every day and the way he works is exciting. He wants to improve every day.

"That's the difference with Messi. Leo is a phenomenon, we never talk about Neymar... but that side of Cristiano, of training, professionalism, focus, motivation, success... Cristiano has an advantage over all the others."

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry played alongside Messi at Barcelona and has since switched his position on the GOAT debate.

But the Frenchman once backed Ronaldo as the best player in football history ahead of his former teammate.

"First of all, you have to take into account that Leo [Messi] and Cristiano Ronaldo are different players," Henry said.

"For sure, they can play on any position from the midfield up, they both have extraordinary technique, but they are different.

"And, if Messi is scoring more goals nowadays, Ronaldo is a player that has scored more and topped the scoring charts last season.

"Then, the greatness of a player is measured by the titles he has helped his team conquer. Therefore, I have to recognise that Cristiano Ronaldo is better than Leo Messi."

Finally, the fifth legend on the list to name Ronaldo as a superior footballer to Messi was Juventus legend Antonio Cabrini.

"Ronaldo is probably the best player in the world," the 1982 World Cup winner said.

"Obviously, the focus in football over the last 10 years has been on the rivalry between Messi and Ronaldo.

"My personal opinion is that Ronaldo is better than Messi, but mainly in terms of leadership.

"Ronaldo has proven himself to be a real leader on a lot of occasions and not just on the pitch. He is a leader in his life as well as in sports."

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Topics: Football News, Football, Barcelona, Serie A, Lionel Messi, Juve, old lady, Juventus, Cristiano Ronaldo, La Liga, Barca

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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