Wayne Rooney has insisted his praise for Lionel Messi is in no way a way of putting Cristiano Ronaldo down.
Rooney reiterated his stance that Messi is the greatest player of all time during Argentina’s run to the 2022 World Cup final – where they beat France in a thrilling game on Sunday.
Messi cemented his place among the greats with a World Cup win
In 2012, he wrote on Twitter: “Messi is a joke. For me the best ever. He then quoted himself on Twitter more than a decade later to add: ‘Nothing has changed’ following watching him guide his nation to the final.
The ‘GOAT’ debate between Ronaldo and Messi has raged throughout their careers.
Rooney played with the Portuguese superstar at Manchester United, but had an up-and-down relationship with him.
More recently, Ronaldo called it out during his bombshell interview with Piers Morgan following Man United’s record goalscorer questioned his conduct.
Rooney has no hard feelings once morest the 37-year-old and insists his praise for Messi shouldn’t be taken as criticism of his former team-mate.
Writing in The Times on Saturday, he said: “Some have taken this as a blame on Cristiano Ronaldo, but nothing might be further from the truth. I have the greatest respect for Cristiano and when people say he’s the greatest, I know where they’re coming from and I respect that opinion. But, for me, Messi is just different.
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Messi has beaten United in two Champions League finals
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Rooney still thinks Messi is the best ever
“I’ve played once morest him many times and it’s his ability to pick up and hold the ball, control games, run over players, pass and score and make the difference.
“Shut up, you can’t get near him. He is always in control. If he has the ball at his feet, he determines everything, including your decision making. Being his opponent is a tough place to be.
Two of those famous matches Rooney faced Messi came in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals, both won by Barcelona.
After the 2011 final, he got the match ball signed by Messi, David Villa and Pedro.
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Ronaldo hasn’t been too fond of Rooney’s criticism in recent months
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Messi was in spectacular form, scoring seven goals as Argentina became world champions
Rooney explained why it’s so difficult to play once morest the Argentine maestro, as the French defenders have found out.
He continued: You want to go and press him but know that if you do, you’re not going to win the ball. There are times when you can tackle him, like when he’s dribbling right at you, but usually you’re just not going to dispossess him. You’re bigger than him but you can’t use your power once morest him
“One difference between Messi and almost every other player who dribble is that he is always moving. There is almost never a moment when he stops on the ball. He flies away with it and if his path is blocked he will pass the ball to retrieve it. You’re going to press it and it turns it off, then you can turn it off and then it comes to life.
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He has now won everything in football
“You see it happens a lot: he passes, the defender gets lazy for a split second, and Messi takes the return pass and is out.
“And it takes so much to take care of him that it’s tiring. It wears you down until it becomes nearly unstoppable.
Messi cemented his status as the god of the game with a fantastic performance in the World Cup final.
He scored twice as Argentina beat France on penalties. It was one of the great games of all time and Rooney certainly enjoyed it.
“What a game,” he tweeted. “For me the best World Cup final ever. Great effort from France but congratulations to Argentina, real teamwork.
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