Messi’s pic’s source

CR7’s pic’s source

The two kings of football, these two has been ruling the footballing world since both has a breakout performance in their youth. For Ronaldo, confident to the verge of arrogance for the sheer belief in his ability even in his youth, he was the star of Sporting Lisbon. Powerful, fast, and masterful with both foot, he was a threat to his opponents through sheer physical ability. His technique is not lacking, however. He is one of the most skillful European players, and his mastery of technique and physicality, along with a machine-like focus on the balance between training and rest is what catapulted him to be among the best. Perhaps Ronaldo’s life would have gone very differently if he had not played that fateful friendly against Manchester United, for Arsene Wenger of Arsenal was in the process of negotiating his transfer. But Sir Alex Ferguson’s interest was piqued by Ronaldo, and that was that. He won the premier league multiple times with Man U (this was my most hated period of English football, for my supported team Arsenal was still paying off debts for their new stadium in Ashburton Grove, and Man U’s fans’ jeering on our performance grates). He won the Champions League, the most prestigious club football competition in the world, in 2008. He moved to Real Madrid a year after this success, and though he won a few domestic cup (the Copa Del Rey) and a Champions League in 2014 (which he has the chance of winning now, being in the final again) he only won one Spanish league title (in 2011/2012), over shadowed by the player fans compared him the most: Lionel Messi. Ronaldo plays mostly as a wrong-footed Left Winger, though he sometimes pitched in as a Striker or (rarely) a Center Forward (the False 9 role).

Messi’s image is, in many ways, the opposite of Ronaldo. He was seen as more humble, helped along by his more introverted attitude and general lack of showboating. For on the pitch, any skillful play Messi exhibited are the ones which will get past his obstacles most effectively. Where Ronaldo is seen as the combination of great talent and  near-perfect hard work in training (though not always in helping his team defend, even in desperate situations), Messi is seen as someone who works hard but whose success was more through sheer God-given ability. Even at a young age he was a player like no other. While Ronaldo was seen as a future complete attacker, Messi is part of the fearsome Machine of ’87: 11 young boys who tore up the Argentine youth scene with their nigh-invincibility. His growth hormone almost led to an end for his future, and no club in Argentina was willing enough to take the huge risk of helping through a very expensive treatment and healing process for a boy who has potential but is not guaranteed to have it realized. Until Barcelona swooped in. Some Argentinians disparaged their Little Magician for this, for in their eyes Messi abandoned Argentine football for the splendor of European riches. But was it not the clubs themselves of his own motherland who rejected him for fearing the risks involved? In Barcelona, Messi’s football was shaped in one of the finest footballing academy in the world: La Masia. This footballing academy is why though he is seen as less generalized than his counterpart Ronaldo, Messi is actually the more complete of the two. Ronaldo’s combination physicality and technique may be seen as more complete, but Ronaldo is primarily a goalscorer. Messi can be a goalscorer, as has been already seen when he took the role of False 9 under Pep Guardiola and stunned the world and did it yet again as a wrong-footed Right Winger under Luis Enrique, Messi is also a playmaker. In fact, recently Messi has switched in the odd game to a classic number 10 role, preparing for decline thanks to age just like Ronaldo switched to a more poacher-like role recently. He has helped Barcelona win 2006 (though he does not play in the final, Arsenal still loses against Eto’o, Ronaldinho, and the Xaviesta duo ;-;), 2009, 2011, and recently 2015 Champions League (Barcelona was knocked out of the 2016 Champions League thanks to the fatigue of playing the most match than any other team in the world). Unlike Ronaldo, Messi has won national titles. However these titles are youth titles: the 2004 u-20 World Cup and the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

This duo are record-breakers and repeat champions. They might be surpassed one day, but I doubt that it would happen in their lifetime.