Over the past fifteen years, Cristiano Ronaldo versus Lionel Messi rivalry has been discussed among fans, pundits, present and past footballers, among others.
Ronaldo and Messi first faced each other in a match in the 2007-2008 UEFA Champions League semi-final during their time at Manchester United and Barcelona, respectively.
The duo’s rivalry had already started by then before Ronaldo later moved to Real Madrid to play in the LaLiga. The Ronaldo-Messi rivalry has reached its peak in recent weeks.
Ronaldo has won the prestigious Ballon d’Or award five times, while Messi has won it seven times in the past.
Ronaldo’s last chance to possibly end his career on top of Messi was during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
The Portugal captain started the tournament with the hope he could lead his country to the final, but the road became impossible for him to walk.
Different obstacles kept appearing in the way as Ronaldo got benched by former Portugal manager, Fernando Santos during the World Cup tournament.
Such a major blow was extremely demoralising for Ronaldo. Plus, the tough year (2022) he had on a personal level did not help him either.
Everything was probably too much to bear for the former Juventus forward and he decided to look out for himself, leaving Europe to join Saudi Arabia, side Al-Nassr in the Middle East.
The big question is, has Ronaldo finally given up on his eternal rivalry with Messi?
“Well, many people never expected Ronaldo to leave Europe for Asia after his contract with Manchester United was terminated by mutual consent,” Stanley Smart, an Abuja-based Sports journalist told newsmen
“Ronaldo had assured Piers Morgan (British journalist) during his famous interview that he wanted to continue his career playing at the highest level.
“But he ended up joining Al-Nassr in a huge deal. He will remain one of the best players to ever play the game.
“Unfortunately, he did not win the World Cup in Qatar, which Messi won.
“I love both players for what they have done to football in many years. But I feel the debate (Ronaldo vs Messi) will continue even when they eventually retire from professional football.
“I believe Ronaldo will set more records in Asia after what he did in Europe and Messi will also continue to set new records until he hangs his boot,” he added
