“Not a Genius” Like Lionel Messi- Cristiano Ronaldo Dismissed as ‘Portugal’s Leader’ by Ex-Juventus Coach

For nearly two decades, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi reigned supreme as soccer’s elite. However, choosing between them often proves a pointless debate as Ronaldo holds the edge in goals while Messi has won soccer’s biggest trophy. A former Real Madrid manager has weighed in on the debate and added that while CR7 does ‘everything‘ on a soccer field, Messi is beyond great. Moreover, despite preferring Messi, he also had some intriguing views regarding Ronaldo’s importance to the national team.

Italian manager Fabio Capello, who has coached the likes of Juventus and AC Milan has given his pick between Messi and Ronaldo. Speaking at the Laureus World Sports Awards in Madrid, he said, “For me, if you talk to me about Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi, I will say Messi.” However, he did reserve words of praise for the former Juventus star. Capello added, “Cristiano Ronaldo is a great player. He won titles, he won the Ballon d’Or but as I said before, it’s not as great as how Messi has been.”

Capello explained, “Cristiano Ronaldo is a great scorer, shoots, does everything, knows how to do everything, but he is not a genius. Very simple.” Capello’s claim is attributed to Messi’s ability to read the game.

Notably, three-time UCL-winning manager and Ronaldo’s former coach at Real Madrid, Zinedine Zidane, had also praised the Argentine playmaker for something similar. Speaking to Messi himself, Zidane elucidated, “You see things before anyone else. I was one second ahead of the rest, you are 3 seconds ahead of the rest.” Per Zidane, this was what separated Messi from other greats, although his quotes were not part of any comparison with the Portuguese.

Furthermore, Capello also stated that Cristiano Ronaldo is not the leader of Portugal. He revealed, “As a coach, the most important thing on the field is always the leader and the leader in Portugal is Pepe“. Capello, however, is not the first one to downplay CR7’s importance to the national team.

French legend thinks Cristiano Ronaldo’s ‘time for Portugal’ is done

Euro 2024 is nearly upon and Portugal looks like one of the favorites. French icon Frank Leboeuf shared a similar view and added that Portugal can win the tournament provided Cristiano Ronaldo does not start! He said, “I actually think they can win the Euros, but only if Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t play. I think his time for Portugal is done.” Additionally, Ronaldo’s international teammate Joao Cancelo also said something along similar lines.

The fullback claimed that Cristiano Ronaldo is way past his prime. Cancelo clarified that while Ronaldo is an important player, the national team does not depend entirely on him.” Cancelo’s comments regarding Portugal’s greatest-ever player indicate that Ronaldo’s stand in the national side is not what it once was. With the Euro 2024 on the horizon. it will be interesting to see the 5-time Ballon d’Or winner’s role in the side.