Pele leaves Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi out of his FIFA 21 Team of the Year

Brazil great Pele has left both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi out of his FIFA 21 Team of the Year.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are seen as two of the greatest footballers to have played the game but did not figure in Pele's Team of the Year.

Lionel Messi's Barcelona have struggled for some time now, while Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus also failed to make an impact. Both teams sacked their manager last summer.

Despite this fact, it is surprising to see Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi not feature in Pele's FIFA 21 Team of the Year.

SOUND ON 🔈- Essa é a minha Seleção do Ano no @EAFIFABR Brasil O que você achou? 🔥 - #FIFA21 #TOTY//SOUND ON 🔈- This is my Team Of The Year on @EASPORTSFIFA. What do you think? 🔥- #FIFA21 #TOTY pic.twitter.com/TEVvGmE6kM

— Pelé (@Pele) January 22, 2021

Pele's FIFA 21 Team of the Year: Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Sergio Ramos, Thiago Silva, Alphonso Davies, Kevin De Bruyne, Thiago Alcantara, Toni Kroos, Kylian Mbappe, Robert Lewandowski, Neymar

Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus and Lionel Messi's Barcelona not at their very best

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in action

While Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi enjoyed good individual seasons last season, their respective sides had often struggled to get going, especially in the UEFA Champions League.

That has also been the case this time around. Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus have not been at their fluent best under the management of Andrea Pirlo, who replaced Maurizio Sarri last summer.

Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 20 goals in 20 games in all competitions this season, but Juventus find themselves fifth in the Serie A table. They are 10 points behind league leaders AC Milan but have a game in hand.

Lionel Messi's Barcelona, on the other hand, are undergoing a transitional period. A summer of upheaval saw long-serving players depart the club. The Blaugrana also appointed Ronald Koeman to replace Quique Setien.

Lionel Messi has scored 14 goals in 22 games in all competitions for the club, but Barcelona have struggled as a team. They are third in the La Liga table.

Cristiano Ronaldo was tentatively linked with a move away from Juventus recently, with a return to Manchester United mooted. However, those rumours have since died down.

On the other hand, Lionel Messi's Barcelona contract expires in the summer, and there have been no signs from his camp about wanting to extend the deal. Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain have been heavily linked as a result.

760 - Cristiano Ronaldo759 - Josef Bican757 - Pele743 - Romario719 - Lionel MessiCristiano Ronaldo beats Josef Bican’s all-time goals record 👏He’s now 41 goals ahead of Lionel Messi 👀 pic.twitter.com/Sb426dnxW6

— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) January 20, 2021

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