“He has proved everything” - Ex-Manchester United man says Cristiano Ronaldo has been ‘disrespected’ with Lionel Messi comparison

Cristiano Ronaldo's former Manchester United teammate Tomasz Kuszczak finds the comparison between Lionel Messi and the Portuguese superstar disrespectful toward the latter. Ronaldo and Messi have written their names into the record books and are often pitted against each other.

Kuszczak, who was Ronaldo's teammate during the Portuguese superstar's first spell at Old Trafford, won the Premier League, the Champions League, and the EFL Cup at United. He also saw Ronaldo lift his first Ballon d'Or in 2008 before leaving for Real Madrid a year later.

Speaking to OLBG (via DAZN), the former Red Devils goalkeeper said:

“I do think that Cristiano Ronaldo has been disrespected, there is all this talk regarding who is better between him and Lionel Messi. I had the chance to train with him and play with him for a couple of years, he has proved everything in football wherever he has been."

Kuszczak added:

“He has always been effective and shown he can be a leader, he deserves 100% respect but it is difficult to say what he is like now because the Saudi Pro League is not a top league.

Backing the 39-year-old icon to keep delivering, Kuszczak said:

“But Ronaldo is Ronaldo. For his country, he has been amazing over the years. As a Portugal team at the tournament he will give you an extra spark, even though he is reaching an age where he might start speaking about retirement, but look at the way he looks even now."

Kuszcak concluded:

“He can keep going another couple of years. I'm sure he's going to be prepared for the tournament this summer. Being back in the European football spotlight, it’s going to be massive motivation for him.”

Ronaldo is all set to lead Portugal at Euro 2024 later this summer. He has registered 41 goals and 12 assists in 40 games this season for Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr.

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Louis Saha answers if Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe can match the Ronaldo-Messi rivalry

Ronaldo and Messi have won a collective 13 Ballons d'Or since 2008, with the Argentine registering 833 goals and 372 assists in 1058 games and the Al Nassr superstar registering 890 goals alongside 250 assists in 1220 matches.

Speaking to OLBG (via DAZN), former Manchester United striker Louis Saha said he does not think Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe can match the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry.

He said:

“Those are the two players in this era who have simply topped their talent, their potential. You can’t ask much more. You will never see it again. You may have Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe fighting for 10 years but it’s never going to be close in terms of greatness, if they want to catch Messi and Ronaldo then they have to score 50 goals a season for the remainder of their careers, it’s impossible.”

Haaland and Mbappe are yet to win a Ballon d'Or. While the Norwegian has 250 goals in 308 games for club and country, Mbappe has 333 goals in 448 games for club and country alongside one FIFA World Cup trophy from 2018.