"For me he has to be number one" - When Wojciech Szczesny picked between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo 

Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny once chose Lionel Messi ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo in the GOAT debate. The Polish goalkeeper briefly retired last summer after terminating his contract with Juventus.

Following Marc-Andre Ter Stegen's knee injury, the Calatans convince Szczesny to come out of retirement to join them in October. The 34-year-old made his first appearance for the LaLiga giants in the 4-0 Copa del Rey win over Barbastro on Saturday.

Interestingly, Szczesny shared the pitch with Cristiano Ronaldo 101 times at Turin, winning 65 games and losing 19. They spent three seasons together with Juventus, winning the league twice.

However, speaking to the press in October last year as cited by One Football, the Pole hailed Lionel Messi as the number one.

“Ronaldo and Messi are very different, they are both great players and for me, they are the best players in history. For the beauty of football that Messi has shown in the last 20 years, for me he has to be number one,” Szczesny said.

The Argentinean legend currently plies his trade with Inter Miami, while CR7 plays in the Middle East with Al-Nassr. Both players' contracts expire this year; while La Pulga's deal runs out in December, the Portuguese will be out of contract this summer.

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How many times have Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo faced each other?

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have faced each other 36 times in all competitions for club and country. The Portuguese has come out on top on 11 occasions, while he has lost 16 games.

CR7 first faced the diminutive Argentinean as a Manchester United player, in the semifinals of the Champions League in the 2007/08 campaign. The Red Devils drew the first leg 0-0, before securing a 1-0 win at home to move to the final and win the tournament.

Cristiano Ronaldo locked horns with Lionel Messi once again the following season, in the Champions League final. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner watched on as La Pulga scored a goal to help Barcelona win 2-0.

The two superstars of modern football took their rivalry to greater heights following Ronaldo's move to Real Madrid in 2009. Their presence gave a new edge to the fabled El Clasico, before the Portuguese left the Santiago Bernabeu in 2018 to join Juventus.

They last met each other in the 2020/21 campaign, in the group stages of the Champions League. Ronaldo scored a brace as the Bianconeri won 3-0.