Ronaldinho Defends ‘Best In the World’ Lionel Messi For Winning FIFA The Best Award Over Erling Haaland

Lionel Messi’s FIFA The Best Men’s Award win over Erling Haaland has attracted tremendous criticism and debate. At the heart of the vitriol is the fact that Haaland fell short despite winning the continental treble with Manchester City. Fueling up the debate, Cristiano Ronaldo said the likes of The Best award are losing credibility. However, not everyone is like CR7. Especially Ronaldinho Gaucho. The Brazilian legend broke his silence on his former teammate Messi’s debated award sweep, hinting he deserved to win those honors.

For Ronaldinho, there is no point in discussing if Messi was best during a particular year. For him, La Pulga is ‘one of the best in history.’

Ronaldinho lacks no conviction that Lionel Messi is the best

Lionel Messi’s award sweep became a talking point in Ronaldinho’s recent press conference. “Messi is one of the best players in history, so how can you discuss whether he is the best in a year or two? Everyone thinks this is football, but for me, he is still the best in the world. It’s very simple,” said Ronaldinho. With this statement, the Barcelona legend snubbed the fact that Leo Messi won the FIFA honor, despite it not considering the period of his World Cup win. La Pulga’s Ballon d’Or win was not this debated or questioned because it considered his 2022 World Cup triumph in Qatar.

Meanwhile, the snubbed Erling Haaland broke the Premier League scoring record in his first season and eventually bagged home the treble after the exploits. Messi owes his award victory to his Ligue 1-winning stint at PSG and a Leagues Cup victory with Inter Miami. Speaking of PSG, it was Kylian Mbappe who was statistically more instrumental to the Parisian side’s League win. Anyhow, according to Ronaldinho, nobody comes close to his former teammate. And it is not a big surprise. With his recent claim, the one-time Ballon d’Or winner just echoed what he has been saying over the years.

Times when Ronaldinho picked Messi as the best

Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho go back in time. It was the Brazilian who set Messi up for his historic first goal for Barcelona as a 17-year-old. Years later, Ronaldinho revealed that he sensed the then-teenager would later become the best in the game. Later, when the four-time Champions League winner led Barca to their second treble in 2014-15, Ronaldinho rushed in and pipped him for the Ballon d’Or win. Again, in 2023, while Messi was fresh off his World Cup crowning, the 2002 World Champion insisted he should win the 2023 Ballon d’Or.

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However, the Brazil veteran has never said Leo Messi is the greatest of all time. He thinks Pele, Maradona, and Ronaldo Nazario are better off than La Pulga. Nevertheless, in choosing between Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldinho never thinks twice about picking the former. He has asserted that the Inter Miami star is the best in this generation. What do you think of Ronaldinho’s statement? Tell us in the comments.

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