Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are two of the best players to ever grace a soccer pitch. The debate of who is the better soccer player is never-ending. Even people who don’t follow soccer debate over who is the better player. Many celebrities, personalities, and even former players sometimes weigh in their opinion.
The latest player to put in his opinion on the debate is a bit surprising. He is Kieran Richardson, who used to be one of Cristiano Ronaldo’s teammates at Manchester United. He played 40 matches with the Portuguese during his spell with the Red Devils from 2002 to 2007. His choice between the two GOATs was rather surprising as he chose Messi over his former teammate.
What did Kieran say regarding the GOAT debate?
He said it on a podcast, The Steven Sulley Study, “They’re both the GOATs. But if I had to pick one, then I have to pick Messi, even though I know Ronaldo, I’ve played with Ronaldo, and I love Ronaldo.”
He explained his decision came down to Messi winning the World Cup, “When they pass away, they’ll still be talked about forever, but just because Messi got that World Cup. It’s a massive thing having that World Cup because even before Messi had the World Cup, everyone was saying, yeah, but he hasn’t won it yet. He can’t be the best of all time because [Diego] Maradona won it, Pele won it.”
“Now there is no question; he’s won the pinnacle any footballer would want to win. Even though they get their own accolades, World Player of the Year so many times, as a footballer, when you’re thinking as a kid, you want to win a World Cup. That’s all you want to win.”
What now for Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo?
Lionel Messi achieved one of his greatest feats when he led Argentina to a World Cup victory last year. He inspired passion in the team and was the Best Player at the tournament with seven goals. Messi then went on to win FIFA’s The Best award for his brilliant year. This season with Paris Saint Germain, he has 13 goals and 13 assists in Ligue 1, though they were knocked out of the Champions League again after losing 3-0 aggregate to Bayern Munich.
Lionel Messi is also rumored to want a move away from PSG, with Barcelona and Inter Miami as his next likely destinations.
Ronaldo meanwhile signed a massive contract with Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr after leaving Manchester United due to a controversial interview with Piers Morgan in November. He became the world’s highest-paid player and has since enjoyed a lot of freedom in the new country.
Cristiano had a dream start to life and scored eight goals, including two hat tricks in the Saudi Pro League. He even won the player of the Month award for February for his eight goals and two assists. His team is now second behind league leaders Al Ittihad after a 1-0 loss last Thursday.
What do you think about Kieran’s GOAT choice? Who do you think is the actual GOAT of soccer? Be sure to leave us your opinions in the comments down below!
