Manchester United; Ronaldo vs. Messi.

Many of the blogs I have written recently have been about one man; Cristiano Ronaldo. As much as I like Darren Fletcher and Ji-Sung Park et al, they don’t quite attract attention like Ronaldo does.

This blog is the result of numerous comments people have left in recent weeks with reference to Ronaldo’s ability. I have seen numerous comments berating Ronaldo and lauding Lionel Messi as the best player in the world. Are these people for real?

So, it’s plain and simple, Ronaldo vs. Messi.

Tomorrow morning, Cristiano Ronaldo will wake up to be declared as the European Footballer of the Year. I think it’s safe to say Ronaldo will be gob smacked by this achievement as he seems like such a modest and quiet guy. He will join an elite band of Manchester United legends as only Best, Law and Charlton have held the title whilst playing for United.

It would be boring if I was to simply list the achievements of Ronaldo as we all know what he is capable of, what he has done and, love him or hate him, it’s impossible to deny how effective he is.

So, to ensure fairness and to avoid being branded a completely biased Ronaldo loving idiot, I accept that Messi undoubtedly has a God given talent. Whilst I would be absolutely delighted if he ever joined United (I know this is never going to happen but I can dream), I wouldn’t swap him for Ronaldo.

‘Messidona’ is an incredible dribbler and has already replicated two of the most famous goals scored by possibly the greatest ever footballer, Maradona.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=x0cVCq8rsiY&feature=related - Remind you of Maradona’s ‘real’ goal against England?

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=frnyf666z0s – I think this is self explanatory.

He also became the first Barcelona player to hit a hat-trick in the El Clásico since the 1993/1994 season – the previous player weas the legandary Romario. And whilst he has the talent, enthusaism and ability to rightly be described as world class and one of the best players in the world, I can honestly say that he isn’t a better player than Ronaldo.

For impact, goals, effectiveness and consistency, there’s only one ‘best’ player in the world. 

Am I right? Who is better and who would you rather have in your team?

Craig Malpas

Comments

[mathias]

Everyone please read the comment Posted by: Kieran | 12 Dec 2008 06:43:37

Kieran you are a credit to these sort of blogs and the main reason I still read them.

Thank you

[Carl]

This has been pointed out before but I'll say it again. The award is for performance and consistency for the 07/08 season. The season where Messi spent most of his time on the treatment table while Ronaldo was scoring goals for fun. It has nothing to do with his demeanor or his antics off the pitch either. Messi is a fantastic player and by his current form he may well pick up the award next year but this year's award was well placed.
Don't like that? Get over it!

[Kieran]

Jesus there is some right blinkered bitter people on here eh? As a Chelsea fan its quite obvious that Ronaldo is currently the best player. the fact that people cant accept this regardless of the facts just because they dont like him is pathetic. You should be a fan of football first then of your team. What a bunch of tribal morons. I love being able to appreciate rivals players like Gerrard, Cesc, Ronaldo and co without the hate that most fans seem consumed with.

[Richard Martin]

Cristiano Ronaldo is a big-head and a flash bugger too. Is this just because he's any old player, or is it because he's a world-class player? And the thing with flash buggers is they are very entertaining to watch.
Messi is good, but last season he wasn't anywhere near as good or effective for Barca as Ronaldo was for Man Utd.
Time will tell whether he becomes the world's best, but on the evidence of last season he isn't.

And if any of you could play like Ronaldo, you'd be big-headed too. We all would.

Rinus Michel, you sir are a muppet. Anyone caught talking about MVP's on a football forum deserves to be hung drawn & quartered. To talk about a dearth of top quality now is ridiculous. Who's fault is it that there is no talent around, the credit crunch?!

To talk about the premier league outside the top 4 having a weak defence is absurd. Surely Barcelona banging in the goals at the moment shows the Primera Liga has a weaker defence. Besides, any league with Titus Bramble playing in it has got to be top notch.

Ronaldo WILL go into football history in the same bracket as the Van Bastens, Cruyffs, Platinis and De Stefanos. He will only go up to the top level when he performs at this level for Portugal and wins them the world cup.

If both players stopped playing today, people would talk more about what Ronaldo did than what Messi did. Forget the fact Ronaldo debuted 2 seasons before Messi & is 2 years older, Ronaldo would be the one talked about.

[Oli]

I love Messi. He is absolute class and deserves all the praise he receives. However, based on last season alone, Ronaldo was better and deserves the award. Long term Messi may well win more individual awards and they will probably all be deserved, but based on last season alone it has to be Ronaldo. The star player of a team that won two hugely important trophies, best player as well as top goal scorer, and added real style and skill as well as just finishing and assists.

[Harry Boulton]

It's amazing what some people proclaim to be greatness just to avoid admitting something they cannot bring themselves to admit, be it through loyalty (misplaced, or sheer stupidity.

50 games, 44 goals. From wide. Golden boot winner, League Winner, CL winner, Players player of the year (twice), FIFPro player of the Year, Writers player of the Year(twice), Fans player of the year (twice).

Anyone who thinks that Ronaldo does not deserve this award is nothing short of a bafoon and a naive. Idiots the lot of you, the figures and acheivments speak for themselves. If you want to appoint an injury prone teenager who's contribution to the season was constantly restricted by injury as the worlds greatest current player then please, by all means, make yourselves look stupid. The qualified football journalists and like minded poeple recognised the talent, the dedication and the acheivement and awarded it accordingly.

[David L]

Joon Shin has obviously never watched Messi beat 5,6,7 men with comments like "if you put 1 or 2 markers on messi for whole 90 minutes, believe me, he can be stopped."
Ben Golberg eloquently expresses my views on the matter. I'd just like to add FACTS to subjectivity. Season 08/09 Messi has scored 15 goals and made 11 assists in all competitions, so far, from midfield. Utd fans comments on here show that everyone recognises Ronaldo doesn't fit the bill of a normal midfielder, ie the position that does the most running for the team, he relied on Rooney and Tevez doing it for him last year. He scored a lot of tap ins as well as spectacular goals, why, because he was regularly the furthest forward player, ie not a midfielder. Messi is a midfielder who makes his runs for the team. Proof? Facts? Eto'o has scored even more goals - 15 from 13 league games. If Ronaldo were a wide midfielder playing for the team, Rooney, Tevez and Berbatov could expect some assists from him. They don't. To repeat comments elsewhere on here, he's a selfish, egotistical..."muppet" - to quote one Utd fan (MRV). That said, there wasn't serious competition for the 07/08 award. To mis-quote Ronaldo, he won't be "first,second or third" in 08/09. Finally, no-one is talking about Ronaldo in the same breath as Maradonna and Pele, but they are about Messi

[Steven D]

Ha! Ha! Ha! So Gerrard is better than all of them (Messi, Kaka, Robinho and Ronaldo) eh Chris H. It must be magic mushroom season already.
And Gerrard never cheats to get penalties does he?

[Nick]

The idea Ronaldo only performs "against the little teams" and therefore shouldn't be the winner is doubly flawed.

Firstly, he scored against Roma (away) and in the final of the Champions League, so that's enough of a contribution for that Competition. (Messi failed to score in two legs against Manchester United - so no "big game" performance there, by the way).

Secondly, for the League - it doesn't matter who you beat. A player who turns out for the "big games" but not the "little games" (e.g. the entire Arsenal squad this season) is actually no more useful than the reverse.

Also, since the Spanish League seems to have essentially two teams competing for top spot, that makes only two domestic "big games" for Messi to play each season. How do you make a judgement on that??

[Jonny]

Rinus Michels, are you having a laugh? An easy route to the final? We played the second favourites in the semi-finals, the Italian runners-up in the quarters and the French champions (with arguably the best striker in Europe in their side) in our route to the final. Besides, you can only beat what is put in front of you - Ronaldo has done that several times over. Messi is obviously talented, but sad as it seems, consistency is as much a part of greatness as anything else. Soemone with his injury record may struggle to truly prove his ability.

[Patrick]

Ronaldo may have scored 40 plus goals in a season as a winger but over half of them were against average teams. The fact is he is not as good as Messi or indeed Kaka. He is a very talented player but he seems more talented against lesser teams. I know someone will point out that he scored in the Champions League final against Chelsea but he was been marked by a stand in right back in Essien that night and apart from the goal he did not play well(missed a penalty). He did score against Liverpool last year but as someone has already pointed out, LFC had only 10 men on the pitch at the time and were chasing the game. I really do not care about his lack of humility but he is not the best player in the world. His work rate is non existant, the diving, the sulking and his lack of real impact against the big teams are all hallmarks of a player who knows his limits!!!!

[Prakash.K]

Rinus Michels,

You are missing the point. The Ballon d'Or is not for life time achievement, it is for the best football palyer of a season.

Can you name another player of lat season who achieved anything near to what Ronaldo has achieved?

Yes, Iskar Casillas is perhaps the best goal keeper palying now. But where was his team in the Champions League last season?

Let us recognise talent irrespective of whether they are palying for Manchester United or Liverpool.

If Liverpool wins the Premier League and the Champions league this season, let us hope Steven Gerrard or Fernando Torres get the award for that. We will then applaud them. And so with Messi, if Barcelona does win this year.

[More than a football club]

Ronaldo keeps complaining all the time, faking foults and winkin to his mates, in the other hand you can see how week after week Messi runs trough players that kick him time and time again, and messi keeps running. If he falls, he just picks himself up and keep playing, never faking a foult or complaining to refs.

I do not know who is the best player, but I do know who I want in my team.

[Antonio Sanchez Puente]

The problem with messi was injury. Actually, last season Barça performed under their expectancies because Messi (and Eto'o) missed a big part of the season (Along Ronaldinho, that was doing who knows what)

This season looks really good for barça; i hope there are no injuries (although Iniesta has some problems at the moment) because i enjoy every match, and all the players are delivering.

[Rinus Michels]

CRonaldo was the most effective player of the past year, but NOT the greatest player. Messi and Kaka missed too many games due to injury (as well as both Milan and Barca being pretty woeful). CRonaldo won by default which shows the dearth of talent there is in the Premier League as well.

Outside of the so-called "top 4", the defending is not that great - teams against which CRonaldo excels against. Against the so-called "top 4" (greedy 4?) he is not so effective. His goal against Liverpool came against a team with 10 men desperately chasing the game, so hardly a big-game performance.

Man U also had one of the easiest routes to the final for years. They didn't meet a decent team until Chelsea in the final under Avram Grant (which again shows the dearth of top quality around Europe at the moment). Compare to Liverpool's series of tougher games against Inter, Arsenal and Chelsea.

Even the goal in the final against Chelsea was due to a defensive error rather than individual genius, though he took it well. The bottling of penalties in the semi-final (where he was non-existent) and in the lottery in the final showed a self-absorbed individual.

We also have to look at his international record which rubbishes some of the claims that he could fit into any team. Deco's words that Messi is the better player is also telling - a Brasilian commending an Argentinian is quite something, when he has the alternative of a Portuguese!

There is also the myth that he was a winger or midfielder last season. If that is the case, we must label Francesco Totti the same as he is nominally an attacking midfielder, but he is always labelled a striker. CRonaldo was pretty much a striker who spent more time in the box during attacks than Rooney or Tevez who did all his water-carrying and made him look great.

And to the person who thinks CRonaldo is the best player than Maradona, are you forgetting such attacking talents such as Michael Laudrup? Hugo Sanchez? George Weah? Ruud Gullit? Gheorghe Hagi? Hristo Stoichkov? Marco Van Basten? Frank Rijkaard? Roberto Baggio ? Alessandro Del Piero (before the injuries) ? Romario? And the true Ronaldo (before his injuries and subsequent laziness could have been one of the all-time greats)?

No doubt that CRonaldo has been the most effective player of the last 2 seasons overall, and deserves to win the MVP (Most Valuable Player) award, for that is what he has been. This also means he will win (deservedly) the Ballon D'Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year award, but he is not the World's best player, but a very very good player.

(The only player who could conceivably have won the award is Iker Casillas of Spain and Real Madrid, but defensive players, and even more so, goalkeepers, are hardly ever recognized).

[jamie]

messi is by far a better player than Ronaldo. i would personally have in my team ahead of Ronaldo any day of the week.

Ronaldo is good but Messi is great

[Robert Hillery]

Everybody else hates Ronaldo! They only want to see and comment on the bad side of him, Messi is no saint either! We call Maradonna the biggest cheat ever for the 'hand of god'! Messi did exactly the same thing last season for Barcelona! He is more of a cheat then Ronaldo! Ronaldo is no saint when it comes to going to ground but there are plenty of other players in other teams that do it! People go on about how he would leave us for Madrid but the fact is, if he really wanted to go Real 100% why did not hand in an Offical Transfer Request? Steven Gerrard handed one in to Liverpool but did'nt have the balls to make the move! Madrid was on his mind this summer but if he really deeply wanted to go, he would be there now. He scored 42 goals last season, and is a League and Europeaun champion. His all round game is better then Messi's although the little argy has the best dribbling skills I have ever seen. He is physically fitter, mentally stronger, tactically better, can use his head, play in different postion's whilst Messi can only be effective when on the ball on the right-hand side of the Barcelona attack. His time will come but for now, take a bow Ronaldo.

[Ross]

Your mate Dave: Bit of a gross generalisation there saying that Messi is universally loved. While I appreciate the guy's footballing talent and would pay to watch him in a second, I don't like the guy's attitude on the pitch, in much the same way I don't like Ronaldo's. I'm sure I'm not alone in this. I think probably saying any player is universally loved in this day and age is an inaccurate statement. There will always be a fairly large group that dislikes a player. Especially the more skillful players, since they tend to be the ones that go down easiest under innocuous challenges. Even Kaka.

[Your Mate Dave]

It's hilarious to see all these Man Utd fans come on defending and praising Ronaldo to the high heavans, when he would sell you down the river for Real any day of the week.

If we're talking effectiveness, then yes, Ronaldo is the best in the world.

He's not universally loved though, in the way that Zidane was - and Messi is.

The only thing that can stop Ronaldo from being one of the greatest in the history of the game is his absolute lack of humility.

[tammy]

some of you bloggrs are simply pathetic..here is a winger who scores 40 goals in one season and i'm talking about 2008 not 1960...is the quickest most determined footballer, mst consistent, steadily improving over the past 5 years and he is only 23 years old...i cannot understand why people still talk aout messi.when Kaka won, he was not the best dribbler nor was he te most exciting.why do people now consider all these factors now it is Ronaldo's turn to take the glory...the award is for th best performer over the course of a season..remember highest goal scoer in the champions league and premier league..when messi matches up to it, the award is h is until the MANU+ RONALDO RULES

[Mike]

Kaka

Brilliant, humble, raises his game for the big occasions. End of story.

[Mark]

You are absolutely correct in my opinion. Messi is better on the eye, can do things that no-one esle can do and is an incredible footballer. But, in simple, bottom-line terms Ronaldo is the more productive and effective footballer. He is more direct and scores more goals, goals win games and the best players are those that win you games. I would rather pay to watch Messi but I would rather have Ronaldo in my team.

[Harry Boulton]

People are missing the point. Messi might have the edge over Ronaldo technically, he may not. That is irrelavant. Who has been the best player over the course of the last 12-18 months? The answer people, is Ronaldo, hands down and well you know it. More goals, more assists, more silverware, more consistancy. Do not try and fool the world into thinking that Messi delivers every week, he does not. Ronaldo deserves his award, no doubt about it. Awards like these always polarise opinion and the bitter nay-sayers will always want their say, but the simply matter of it is this: the experts who vote on these awards voted for Ronaldo in almost landslide fashion. By choosing to disagree, they only make theselves look like fools. Cristiano Ronaldo is the worlds best player. We all knew that anyway, now it's official.

[MARLIN]

Undoubtably Ronaldo achieved more than any player in the world last year and deserves to be World Player of the year.

However, he is NOT as technically gifted or as intelligent as Messi. Messi is far more creative, has far better vision, better passing and is a better finisher. To the football purists Messi is the best footballer in the world.

Ronaldo is extremely talented, hungry, driven and very direct. He is without a doubt the best athlete on the pitch; strong, quick, great leap, quick feet. He shoots on site and scores a lot of goals (though not always in the big games...)In a different way to Messi, he too could be seen as the best player in the world.

It all depends on what you are looking for. Athleticism and Goals vs Technique and Genius.