Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo: Arsenal star admits he would want Argentina captain to win the FIFA World Cup instead of the Manchester United superstar

Arsenal attacker Reiss Nelson has stated that he would rather see Argentina captain Lionel Messi win the FIFA World Cup than Portugal superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have established themselves as two of the best footballers of all time. They have won a plethora of trophies with both club and country, as well as individually, to cement their status.

However, the World Cup is one trophy that has evaded them, although they have participated in four editions of the tournament. Messi and Ronaldo have now arrived in Qatar to play their fifth, and possibly last, World Cup with the hope of finally getting their hands on the prize.

At 35 and 37 years of age, Messi and Ronaldo are nearing the end of their careers. Fans are hopeful that their respective icons can hang up their boots with at least one World Cup win.

The truth, though, is that only one of the two superstars can go home with the prize. It is possible that at least one of Messi and Ronaldo will retire without success in the biggest tournament of them all.

With the commencement of the World Cup upon us, Nelson was asked who he would rather see win it between Messi and Ronaldo this year. The Arsenal attacker was quick to choose the Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) superstar as his preferred choice.

Nelson also admitted that he would rather see Harry Kane, who plays for Arsenal's arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur, winning the Golden Boot over Kylian Mbappe.

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Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo kick off FIFA World Cup campaign this week

Lionel Messi's Argentina will play their first match of the FIFA World Cup on Tuesday (22nd November). They will lock horns with Saudi Arabia at Lusail Stadium in their opener.

Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal will kick off their World Cup run on Thursday (24th November). They are scheduled to face Ghana in their first group-stage match of the competition.

Apart from Saudi Arabia, Argentina will also go up against Mexico and Poland in their group. Portugal, on the other hand, have been pitted against Uruguay and South Korea, along with Ghana.

Both sides will be positive about progressing into the knockout phase of the competition as group winners. However, it remains to be seen if Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo can go the distance in Qatar.

Lionel Messi starred in Argentina's 5-0 win against the UAE in their warm-up match last week. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo only began training with Portugal on Saturday (19th November) after a bout with gastroenteritis.