Piers Morgan ranks Cristiano Ronaldo 1st and Lionel Messi at 5th behind Arsenal icon and Brazil duo as he names best 21st century footballers

English journalist Piers Morgan has ranked Cristiano Ronaldo above Lionel Messi in his list of the best players of the 21st century. He placed the Portuguese icon in first position while the Argentine was ranked fifth.

Morgan made this assertion while reacting to a post by Football Tweet on X, which listed the top 25 players of the 21st century as ranked by ESPN. The list named Messi as the best player of the 21st century above Ronaldo in second place.

However, Morgan claimed that the ranking was wrong. He then named Cristiano Ronaldo as the best player of the 21st century, followed by Ronaldo Nazario, Thierry Henry, Ronaldinho, and Lionel Messi, in that order.

The debate between Messi and Ronaldo has continued to divide football fans and pundits alike. The two superstars have dominated the sport for the past two decades, winning a combined 13 Ballons d'Or. Despite being in the twilight of their careers, their rivalry rages on.

Piers Morgan, meanwhile, is a huge Ronaldo fan. He notably conducted the controversial interview with the Portuguese icon, which led to his exit from Manchester United in 2022 after he criticized the club's management and then-manager Erik ten Hag.

Italy legend Marco Materazzi claims Ronaldo Nazario was as good as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi combined

Former Italy midfielder Marco Materazzi has named Brazil great Ronaldo Nazario as the best player he has ever seen. In a recent interview with Rio Ferdinand, Materazzi claimed that Ronaldo was as good as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo combined.

Materazzi said:

"For me, R9 (Ronaldo) is the best. The best. He was Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo combined. We played together at Inter Milan for one year - (Hector) Cuper was the manager when we lost Serie A in the last game against Lazio in Rome. Normally, our training was more one-to-one, keep the ball in the middle, and then defend. We had to defend for 15 metres."

Ronaldo Nazario is widely regarded as one of the greatest strikers in football history. He won the Ballon d'Or twice (1997, 2002) and guided Brazil to the 2022 FIFA World Cup title, emerging as the tournament's top scorer with eight goals.