No Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi in Richarlison’s Favorite Players in the World

When it comes to the best soccer talents, there are plenty of names. But no one can match the dominance of the two evergreen names, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Even today, the two undisputable GOATs of ‘the beautiful game’ are the reasons for countless ‘GOAT’ debates. But in a surprising turn of events, Richarlison shockingly ditched both of them from his list of current favorite stars. Who made it then? Haaland? Mbappe?

Now that the likes of Messi, Ronaldo, and Neymar are at the fag end of their careers, it’s the newer generational talents that are taking the limelight. Interestingly, he mentioned the names of Manchester City’s Erling Haaland alongside the Real Madrid duo of Jude Bellingham and Rodrygo, as his choices for the current Top 3 players in the world, while speaking to ESPN UK. The names he mentioned are undoubtedly talented, but the ones he omitted caught everyone’s attention.

Aside from the obvious, Messi and Ronaldo, what’s interesting is that Richarlison vocally snubbed his Brazilian teammate, Vinicius Jr., who recently became a watercooler topic after demolishing FC Barcelona in the Supercopa de Espana, with a hattrick! Another eyebrow-raising snub was Kylian Mbappe! Despite finishing 3rd in both the 2023 Ballon d’Or and the FIFA ‘The Best’ Men’s Award standings, the Frenchman received a cold shoulder from Richarlison.

While Bellingham, Rodrygo, and Haaland will be happy to make Richarlison’s list of top 3 players, they failed to make his ultimate player list. During that time, he again snubbed an important soccer luminary. 

Richarlison prefers Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi! 

In another ESPN segment, Richarlison was asked to make his ultimate player using various soccer attributes. For speed, he took Kylian Mbappe’s name, whereas for strength, he named his country’s legendary player, Adriano. Talking about intelligence, Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos made the cut, with Neymar earning his spot for dribbling.  

READ MORE: Scott McTominay Picks Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo & Kylian Mbappe’s Skills for His Ultimate Player

Cristiano Ronaldo was named for his lethal shooting prowess, while Kevin De Bryune was named for his remarkable passing trait. On the other hand, for leadership, Richarlison took the name of his fellow countryman, Thiago Silva. Last but not least, for celebrations, he named himself while happily acknowledging his pigeon dance!

From the current bunch of superstars, who makes your ultimate team? Let us know below. 

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