Al-Nassr forward, Cristiano Ronaldo has said his rivalry with Lionel Messi “is gone” having both already “changed the history of football.”
The two footballers have won a combined 79 trophies and are the only two players to have scored over 800 goals each.
Ronaldo said their respective supporters no longer have to harbour hate towards the other as they’ve left an indelible mark in football.
“I don’t see things like that, the rivalry is gone. It was good, the spectators liked it. Those who like Cristiano Ronaldo don’t have to hate Messi and vice versa.
“We’ve done well, we have changed the history of football. We are respected all over the world, that’s the most important thing,” he said.
Ronaldo left European football for Saudi Arabia in January this year, after his contract at Manchester United was terminated.
Messi, who won the 2022 World Cup, joined Inter Miami CF in June as a free agent after two seasons at Paris Saint-Germain.
In similar news…
Paris Saint-Germain star, Kylian Mbappe recently disclosed that he’s learnt a lot from Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
He told La Gazzetta dello Sport that the duo are eternal and truly special. The 24-year-old hailed Ronaldo and Messi while dismissing talks of a rivalry between him and Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
Many have touted Haaland to rival Mbappe in a career-long challenge set by two of the game’s greatest-ever players – Messi and Ronaldo.
Mbappe noted that such comparisons between himself and Haaland is something that has been happening with footballers before him.
He said; “It happens perhaps every fifty years or more to have two players like Messi and Ronaldo at such levels for so long. We lived through an exceptional era and I hope the fans took advantage of it.
“I was lucky enough to play against Cristiano and then against and together with Leo: they are truly special.
“I learned a lot from them, especially with Messi in these two seasons. They wrote the history of football: they are eternal.”
