"What are we going to achieve together?" - When Steven Gerrard explained why he would pick Lionel Messi over Cristiano Ronaldo

In 2022, Steven Gerrard picked between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in an interview where he chose his best five-a-side team. Messi and Ronaldo are believed to be two of the best players ever to play football professionally and have had a rivalry that has spanned nearly two decades.

Speaking via OneFootball, Gerrard picked a team of Gianluigi Buffon, Paolo Maldini, Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldinho, and Lionel Messi. He explained his choice of the Argentine, saying:

“There are certain players who are on a different level to anyone else out there, Messi and Ronaldo. But Ronaldo doesn’t get in my team. I am more about what you are going to do for the team. What are we going to achieve together? Ronaldo will win you things but I am more about a team player than an individual player, so I’ll always go down that road.”

Cristiano Ronaldo is the most prolific professional footballer in sports history with 925 goals to his name, while Messi has won a record 46 trophies in his career. Steven Gerrard, meanwhile, was recently let go as head coach of Al-Ettifaq, who are competing with Ronaldo's Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.

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Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi's football legacy

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are widely believed to be two of the greatest players of all time. The duo have 13 Ballons d'Or and nine UEFA Champions League titles between them, highlighting their dominance in the sport.

Ronaldo began his career with Sporting CP before joining Manchester United in the summer of 2003 for a reported €19 million. Six years later, he joined Real Madrid for a then-world record €94 million. He joined Juventus in the summer of 2018 for €117 million before rejoining Manchester United in 2021 for €17 million. After a falling out with Erik ten Hag, he joined his current club, Al-Nassr, on a free transfer in January 2023 after mutually terminating his contract with the Red Devils.

Lionel Messi spent most of his career at Barcelona, where he came through the famed La Masia ranks to score 672 times and provide 303 assists in 778 appearances. He joined Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer in 2021 and his current club, Inter Miami, on a free transfer in 2023.

Messi has led his country to two consecutive Copa America titles and a World Cup, while Ronaldo helped Portugal win Euro 2016 and the UEFA Nations League in 2019.