“He wasn’t good”, “We won every single game” – Ex-Man City star insists Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are not the best players he faced

Former Manchester City midfielder Stephen Ireland recently claimed that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were not the best players that he ever faced on the pitch. Ireland believes that Cesc Fabregas and Eden Hazard were tougher opponents.

Speaking about his pick, Ireland explained that when he played against Messi's Barcelona, the Argentine was not at his best in that game. He said (via talkSPORT):

"Your experience is different to that of a fan because I’ve played for Manchester City in a pre-season friendly against Barcelona. Lionel Messi played, he wasn’t good. We won the game. I can’t say that Messi is the best player I’ve played against because my experience in that game was that he wasn’t good."

The 36-year-old added:

"My point was that as much as these lads are unbelievable and legends of the game, and rightly so, when I played against them personally I never kind of got into the changing rooms afterwards and thought ‘wow, they were incredible, they handed my a*** to me’."

Ireland represented City's senior team between 2005 and 2010 and recalled beating Cristiano Ronaldo's Manchester United on several occasions. He said:

"I always thought I competed well enough with them in the moment. Of course, over a career, you cannot compare. It is day and night. I played against Cristiano Ronaldo four or five times for Manchester City against Manchester United and we won every single game we played against him."

The former City midfielder stated that Cesc Fabregas and Eden Hazard were brilliant whenever he came up against them. He added:

“So it is very hard for me to say that Ronaldo is the best player I have played against. I can only go off their performance on the day against me. Hence why I said Cesc Fabregas. Every time I played against him, very good. Eden Hazard, very, very good. So that is my opinion based on that question.”

Stephen Ireland played 175 games for Manchester City, scoring 23 goals and providing 25 assists. He also represented Stoke City, Aston Villa and Newcastle United before announcing his retirement in 2018.

Will Lionel Messi join Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia?

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano recently confirmed that Lionel Messi will leave Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the season, which has led to speculation about his future destination.

While there have been widespread reports of a potential return to Barcelona, the Blaugrana's dire financial situation makes a move unlikely. Lionel Messi reportedly has a €400 million per year offer from Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal.

If the Argentine moves to the Middle Eastern club, he could resume his rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese superstar currently plays for Al-Hilal's city rivals Al-Nassr.