“See if Messi did what he did” – Ex-Brazil international names player he respects more than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo

Former Brazil attacking midfielder Djalminha has revealed that he respects Ronaldinho even more than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. According to Djalminha, Messi never managed to play as well as Ronaldinho did in his best two years at Barcelona.

Ronaldinho joined Barcelona from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in 2003 and spent five seasons at Camp Nou. The 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons were Ronaldinho’s best at Barcelona, with the player going on to win the Champions League trophy, two La Liga titles, a Copa del Rey and a Ballon d’Or (2005).

According to Djalminha, Ronaldinho played his heart out in those two seasons and even Messi has not yet done any better. Revealing why he respected Ronaldinho more than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Djalminha told Brazilian outlet UOL:

"Of the younger generation, [Ronaldinho] is the one I respect the most. More than everyone else. More than Messi, more than Cristiano. Take his two years at Barcelona and see if Messi did what he did.

"He won Champions League, won Spanish league, won everything, and put on a hell of a show and played like hell. Messi did that for 15 years, but in those two years, Messi never did better than that."

Ronaldinho scored 39 goals and claimed 40 assists in 87 appearances in the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons. Playing alongside Ronaldinho, Messi scored one goal in nine games in the 2004-05 season before going on to record eight goals and five assists in 25 appearances in 2005-06.

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Al-Hilal prepared to offer Lionel Messi a deal even bigger than Cristiano Ronaldo’s

Cristiano Ronaldo became the highest-paid athlete of all time after he signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Al-Nassr in January. According to multiple sources, Ronaldo will earn a staggering £175 million during his stay in Saudi Arabia.

According to the Daily Mirror, Al-Nassr’s rivals Al-Hilal are prepared to make a statement signing of their own by bringing Lionel Messi to Saudi Arabia. It has been claimed that the Pro League giants are prepared to offer Lionel Messi a package even greater than Cristiano Ronaldo’s to bring him this summer.

With Messi’s PSG contract expiring in June 2023, Barcelona have already expressed their desire to bring him back to Camp Nou. It will be interesting to see if Al-Hilal manage to persuade Messi to ditch his former employers with their record-breaking offer this summer.