“He makes all his teammates better” - When Christian Pulisic picked his ‘favorite’ in Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi debate

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have inspired a generation of footballers, including the United States star Christian Pulisic. The AC Milan midfielder, who has made over 70 appearances for USMNT, once chose Messi over Ronaldo and explained his reasoning for the same.

Back in 2018, when Pulisic was still with Borussia Dortmund, he was seen as a young talent with immense potential ready to make his mark on the football world. At that time, Messi was playing for Barcelona, having won five Ballon d’Ors. Meanwhile Ronaldo, the reigning 2017 Ballon d’Or winner, also had five to his name while playing for Real Madrid.

In an interview with ESPN, the then-19-year-old explained that he chose Messi over Ronaldo because he idolized the Argentine. While he acknowledged Ronaldo’s talents, he felt Messi has a unique ability to bring out the best in his teammates.

“Messi was the one I watched all the time growing up, he was my favorite player. He makes all his teammates better. Nothing against Ronaldo because I’ve seen it first hand and he’s an unbelievable player. It’s not an easy one [who is better], but I would say Messi because growing up he was always my favorite," he said.

Since making the statement, Pulisic has faced both legends several times. But at that time, he had only played against his idol Messi in the 2016 Copa America semi-finals, where Argentina won 4-0.

The career paths of both Messi and Ronaldo since then have certainly been surprising. Ronaldo left Real Madrid that same year to join Juventus. After scoring over 100 goals for the Italian giants, he returned to Manchester United in 2021. After mutually terminating his contract with the Red Devils in November 2022, he joined Al-Nassr. Ronaldo recently became the first men’s player to score 900 career goals.

Messi, meanwhile, joined Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 after leaving Barcelona. After two seasons with the French giants, he decided to play the latter part of his career at Inter Miami. During this period, the 37-year-old won three more Ballon d’Ors and helped Argentina win two Copa America titles and the World Cup.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo still going strong

Messi and Ronaldo have been the flag bearers for Argentina and Portugal, respectively. However, as both approach the latter stages of their careers, questions have arisen about their potential retirement from international football.

Despite being 39, Ronaldo is eager to continue playing at the top level. He showed his value by scoring once each against Croatia and Scotland during the recent international break.

"It never crossed my mind that my cycle [with Portugal] had come to an end. Quite the opposite: it gave me even more motivation to continue to be honest," Ronaldo said (via Al Jazeera).

Messi, on the other hand, had previously retired from international football in 2016 after failing to win the Copa America. Since then, he has returned to the national team to help Argentina win four trophies - two Copa America titles (2021 and 2024), World Cup (2022), and Finalissima (2022).