didnt do it when it mattered?? scored importent goals in 2 cl finals mom in 1. his performance in the cl semi final in bernabeau last season. hat trick in clasico. 4 goals vs arsenal when they were going out in agg. and numerous others that i havn't the time or interest to list. Cant think of many other players who have done it in big games to the level of messi in recent times. Maybe zidane iniesta schweinsteiger and ballack in his prime would too.

Mancirish has a serious grudge against messi don't know is it because hes tore utd a new one a few times or that hes generally regarded as a better player then his favourite player.

You can't say anything can ya.... Did he do it against Chelsea when it mattered?

I've always said the lad is a fanastic footballer, i don't know some people.....

I see Real won La leiga last night and Ronni was on the score sheet yet again. Got to be World player of the year this season. Its not even close...

When it comes down to Ronaldo v Messi , There really is only one winner for me, And thats Lionel Messi

While there is no doubting the quality of both players, Messi just edges it for me. I've been watching both players with great interest over the years and while both seem to be getting better in terms of goal returns , Theres just something likeable about Lionel Messi as oppose to Cristiano Ronaldo in my opinion. I like seeing players play with a smile on their face, I like players appriciating the efforts of their team-mates around them and i feel both of these players differ in this respect. From interviews in the past, I've noticed if Messi is asked questions about him being the best he dodges them and talks about his team mates , Whereas in 2008 Ronaldo was asked did he deserve the golden boot and his response was ""No one did what I did last season and for this, I deserve the Golden Boot and why not the Best World Player award?" - That cockiness is something i hate in a sportsman. Its the same with boxers like David Haye. He sulks on the pitch constantly, He stands there with his arms out stretched giving out to team mates , Lionel Messi never does that, Messi is the one who would remind you of a kid making his debut for a big club, A smile and a buzz of excitment in his face every time he takes to the pitch. Its great to see. Thats one of Ronaldo's downfall, He just sulks too much and he is very cocky.

Messi is your ideal team player. Yes he scores goals galore, And yes he does have a tendancy to over-do things at times, However if he loses the ball . He will fight to win it back. He will track back and despite playing all over the final third, You will see messi at left or right back trying to win the ball back when he loses it. I have yet to see Cristiano Ronaldo show a consistant determination or a consistant hunger to work hard for THE TEAM. Wether it be Manchester United, Real Madrid or Portugal. He still has petulance in his game which will always take away from the unbelieveably talented player he is. Because lets face it both are marvellous incredible football players and its a privalage to watch such players , But Messi's attitude and hunger to be a team player rather than an individual will always outshine the petulance of any other world class footballer out there today or in the future.

Messi played poorly in th last three weeks, (two legs v chelsea and Real) , But he has scored 8 hat tricks this season, He has scored 3 times against Real , As the above poster mentioned some of the big games he has scored in also , So anyone who says messi doesnt produce in big games recently is simply nitpicking. He is the greatest player of his generation and i dont think anyone can make a valid argument as to how he isnt.But thats just my view, A view in which people can agree or disagree with

I personally think Messi is the best player in the world but I have to say I find it increasingly curious the amount of Messi fanboys about that get mortally offended if anyone stops short of saying he's the greatest thing the world has ever seen. What is it about him that gets grown non-argentinian or barca-supporting men so emotional?

for every messi fan there is someone who puts him down dont like him. Not his biggest fan but will stand up when people talk rubbish about him not doing it when it mattered. No he didn't play great in either game against chelsea but you were insinuating hes not a big game player.

Plus your a blinkered ronaldo fan aswell. fair enough he has been the main man in leading real to the league but to say he should be guaranteed world player of the year is a joke. Now if he was to have a great euros with portugal then hed be in pole position. but messi is looking like getting 70 goals this season along with a club world cup and spanish cup. If gomez vpersie ozil ribery xavi etc were to lead their country to the euro title they would be in with a shout too.

Also just to add I like a few others think xavi is the best player in the world and it's no surprise to see barca's bad run in the last few weeks coincided with his niggling injury getting worse and were he barely lasted more then 60 mins in the chelsea, real games.

Just think messi is a comfortably better player then ronaldo. both great players mind. Although talk of whether one is moody or plays with a smile on the pitch is irrelevent. both can be equally moody it matters not a jot.

Another accusation against Messi has been that he's never really done it at international level. What exactly has Ronaldo done at international level? Yes he's played in the Euro 2004 final, but he was a kid then and you could hardly say he was the main man. WC semi in 2006 but I can't remember him lighting up that tournament exactly either. In the last Euros he was nowhere to be seen when Germany dumped them out, ditto vs Spain in the last World Cup.

You could say the same about Ronaldo Breffni... Some people see no wrong in him.

International level is irrelevant for me, Best was seen as the best (excuse the pun) in the world at a time and he never even played in a WC. Both Ronaldo and Messi havnt shown at the big tournaments but both are the top 2 in the world at the minute. In what position, i'm not sure. Its their goal scoring that sets them above any other player in the world at the minute and theres not a lot to choose between them in that regard.

Question is, how do you decide who is the best player. What sets one above the other? If i had to have one of them in my team i'd possibly go for Ronaldo. But only Just.

Cmills Fan.
County: Antrim
Posts: 427

1165410 You could say the same about Ronaldo Breffni... Some people see no wrong in him.

Not really, you can't compare the levels of criticism Ronaldo gets to Messi. Nobody really thinks Messi is not at least one of the best players in the world, while theres a significant numbers of people who think Ronaldo is average.

jm25
County: Galway
Posts: 25

1165367 for every messi fan there is someone who puts him down dont like him.

There really isn't.

He has scored 9 hat-tricks this season. 9!

Derry_ledd
County: Derry
Posts: 1903

1165434 He has scored 9 hat-tricks this season. 9!

Yeah but one of them was last night and two of the goals were penalties that really shouldn't have been given!!! :)

Also I've seen the argument made here before that scoring a lot of goals in a short space of time should count against you as it is not consistent scoring. Bull I know, but whats good for the goose etc

waynoI
While there is no doubting the quality of both players, Messi just edges it for me. I've been watching both players with great interest over the years and while both seem to be getting better in terms of goal returns , Theres just something likeable about Lionel Messi as oppose to Cristiano Ronaldo in my opinion. I like seeing players play with a smile on their face, I like players appriciating the efforts of their team-mates around them and i feel both of these players differ in this respect. From interviews in the past, I've noticed if Messi is asked questions about him being the best he dodges them and talks about his team mates , Whereas in 2008 Ronaldo was asked did he deserve the golden boot and his response was ""No one did what I did last season and for this, I deserve the Golden Boot and why not the Best World Player award?" - That cockiness is something i hate in a sportsman. Its the same with boxers like David Haye. He sulks on the pitch constantly, He stands there with his arms out stretched giving out to team mates , Lionel Messi never does that, Messi is the one who would remind you of a kid making his debut for a big club, A smile and a buzz of excitment in his face every time he takes to the pitch. Its great to see. Thats one of Ronaldo's downfall, He just sulks too much and he is very cocky.

So absolutely nothing to do with ability then... Thank you waynoI, you have put in a nutshell the reason why people look at messi one way and ronaldo another, and none of it has anything to do with what they do with the ball. The thing is the last time I looked it wasnt a popularity contest, so whether he plays with a smile on his face or wearing a false-face, it doesnt make the slightest difference.
Funnily enough david haye gets the same treatment. Did you know that david haye unified the cruiserweight division while still in his 20s? People refuse to acknowledge this because he is cocky, but is that fair or are people letting their judgement be clouded by emotion? I know both haye and ronaldo arent nice guys, but so what? Why should it matter what type of guys they are when you are talking about their ability?

Also regarding ronaldo's answer, does it make a difference that he was 100% correct?


Manc, he didnt do it in the big el classico game that decided the league either.

I know both haye and ronaldo arent nice guys, but so what? bit harsh comparing ronaldo to haye. what bad has ronaldo actually done?? while haye is an A grade jacka$$.

breff just look at this thread there are plenty on it who like to put down messi at any available chance.

He has already done it in a number of big games! He has nothing to prove! If we were judging players on their performance in big games then Messi truely would be light years ahead of Ronaldo as the latter has flopped in so many of them. Some people would say a player is only as good as their last game but people who know football know better. Messi is untouchable, history will prove that.

Yeah Messi is a fair bit ahead of Ronaldo indeed. I agree that their performances are the only thing worth considering and when you look at that season after season Messi has outshone Ronaldo. As a side note well done to Mourinho who yesterday became only the fourth manager to win League titles in four different countries. The others done it in lesser leagues so for him to win the title in four of the big 5 European Leagues is something else. Yesterday was a great day for him and Messi who both cemented their place as the greatest manager and player in the World respectively

So lets get this right, if you seem you are a bit arrogant or possibly may be not a very nice person, you can't be the best the best footballer in the world?

Have i got it lads?......

OMG its a good job hanging was abolished a good few years back.... I must remember that if you actually say as it is you talk rubbish....

Real and Ronaldo have been by far been the best 2 things in Spain this season. A shame that neither could make it into the Champions League final but that shows you the level of football in that league. No wonder the 2 lads can score so many goals and 9 hat-tricks i can do that against pub teams.... So lets not here that old story. I don't know....

I'd like to see if the 2 lads could score that many goals in Germany and England. La Liga is obviously a third rate league similar to Scotland where you have 2 teams and then the rest are cannon fodder.... Granted 2 good teams but that is it.

Mancirish
County: UK
Posts: 1325

1165110 Did see it when it mattered against Chelskie boys.... That's the mark of a true great, to come to the table when the chips are really down

so by your own admission thats ronaldo ruled out as a true great since he's hardly (if ever) done it while the chips were down. which is generally considered another flaw with him, goes missing in big games.

no one can do it all the time when the chips are down. not even maradona etc. but messis done it plenty of times.

if thats the case manc, why isnt every quality strikers in la liga scoring 40 odd goals?. after ronaldo and messi, the goals scoring is very similar to the premiership. and if the other teams are cannon fodder, why did athletic club beat united off the park twice? and yes chelsea beat barca, so if the teams in 6th/7th are capable of beating the leader in another league, then maybe they are of a similar standard, with la liga no doubt being technically superior. so hardly cannon fodder.

ronaldo against bayern summed up his whole career for me. will get goals and is a world class striker/goal scorer, but offers little if anything from general play. surely to be considered the best in the world, you have to offer a lot more. he can hardly beat his man one on one. normally just does some stepovers and kicks the ball down the line to the side of the defender and whips it in. but surely he should actually be able to go by his man on a regular basis with all this lightning pace and super quick feet that i hear of? he's pretty much brain dead when it comes to opening up defences with passes and through balls. and the greatest dead ball specialist in the world ive often heard? with a ratio of probably around 1 goal from every 30 attempts, i wouldnt even bother moving anymore if i was the goalie as he'll just hit it into the wall, row z or straight down the middle. a very over-rated player