Late Brazil legend Pele once explained his stance in the age-old Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo debate. The two icons are widely considered to be two of the greatest players to have graced the beautiful game.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have together won a record 13 Ballons d’Or together, with Messi boasting of a record eight and Ronaldo five. The duo have dominated football for the last two decades, although their rivalry was at its peak between 2009 and 2018, when they played for LaLiga rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid, respectively.
Several pundits, fans and legends of the game have shared their take on who’s the better footballer between Messi and Ronaldo. However, Brazilian legend Pele, hailed by many as the greatest footballer of all time, preferred Lionel Messi over his archrival for being a more complete player.
In a 2018 interview with SporTV, the Brazilian was asked to take his pick between the two legends. He said (via SPORTBible):
“I would still stay with Messi. Scoring is important, no doubt, but if you do not have anyone to prepare, then the ball is not enough. For my team, I prefer Messi. As for Cristiano Ronaldo, he’s a great goalscorer.”
Pele further explained his choice, adding:
“Ronaldo’s been able to score goals, while you see Messi creating goals and directing the play, as well as scoring. Ronaldo’s a great goalscorer, but in terms of the complete player, there’s no doubt that Messi is the best.”
Despite choosing Messi, the Brazilian also added that other legends of the game, such as Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona and Zico should be considered in the debate of the greatest of all time. He also considered Neymar Jr to be a close contender to be in the debate at that time.
“It’s sad that you have only two players in the world to choose from, Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona, Pele, Zico, Junior. All over the world now there are only two players. And Neymar, right? Our Brazilian is getting there,” he said.
Pele passed away in December 2022 at the age of 82 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
“These two are superior to the rest” – When Diego Maradona weighed in on the Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo debate
In a 2016 interview with MARCA, late Argentine legend Diego Maradona was asked to compare Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Maradona believed the two icons to be at the same level, and said (via GOAL):
“These two are superior to the rest. Messi isn’t better than Cristiano Ronaldo and vice versa. Ronaldo always shows great passion and, honestly, it bores me to repeat that Messi doesn’t have to win a World Cup to be a phenomenon. Enough of that!”
Much like Pele in 2018, Diego Maradona also heaped praises on Neymar Jr, who was at his peak at Barcelona at that time. The Argentine considered Neymar to be in the same race with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. He said:
“Ronaldo and Messi are no longer in a two-horse race, there are three running to win. I knew that Brazil wasn’t going to stand by after Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, and Kaka, then Neymar emerged and entertains everyone. I love watching him play, you can kick him 200 times and he’ll still run at the defence again and again.”
Diego Maradona passed away in November 2020 at the age of 60 in Argentina.