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Former England striker Gary Lineker has disputed Sir Alex Ferguson’s old claim about Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Lineker believes that the Argentine is much more than just a “Barcelona product,” as Ferguson had branded him back in 2015.
In April 2015, the legendary Manchester United manager gave his two cents on the Messi-Ronaldo debate. Ferguson claimed that the No.7 had the quality to succeed even at the smallest clubs, while Messi could not thrive outside of Barcelona.
Ferguson had stated (via Mirror):
“Cristiano Ronaldo could play for Millwall, QPR, Doncaster Rovers… anyone, and score a hat-trick in one game. I'm not sure Messi can do it. I think he's a Barcelona product.”
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In light of the Argentina international’s struggles at Paris Saint-Germain, this old quote has resurfaced on social media. Seeing the comments float, Lineker jumped in defense of the former Barcelona star, claiming Ferguson’s assessment was “nonsensical.” The 61-year-old tweeted:
“This is nonsensical. I know we don’t tend to look beyond these shores very much, and I’m sure Sir Alex is being supportive of one of his own, but even as recently as this summer, Messi almost single-handedly won the Copa America for Argentina. They're both greats.”
Ronaldo and Messi both crash out of Champions League Round of 16
Having dominated the football scene for the last 15 years, the two legendary superstars can no longer be at their best, week in, week out. The former El Clasico rivals recently crashed out of the Champions League.
The Paris Saint-Germain forward was the first to be knocked out. Having won the first leg 1-0 against Real Madrid, PSG fell to a 3-1 defeat in the return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu last Wednesday. Following his disappointing performance, the Argentina star was booed by his own supporters in Sunday’s Ligue 1 victory over Bordeaux.
Ronaldo, who scored a stunning hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur last Saturday, was knocked out on Tuesday night. Manchester United fell to a 0-1 defeat against Atletico Madrid at Old Trafford, which saw Los Rojiblancos progress to the quarter-finals with a 1-2 aggregate scoreline.
