“He’s a once in a lifetime player” - When Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs gave his opinion on the Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi debate
Back in 2019, Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs shared his take on the never-ending debate between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The Welshman, although expressing his admiration for Ronaldo, claimed that a player like Messi is ‘rare’.
Giggs and Ronaldo shared the locker room while they both were at Manchester United. They played 205 matches together and had a joint goal participation of 21. They also won multiple trophies together at the Old Trafford, which includes the Champions League and Premier League titles. On the other hand, Giggs shared the pitch with Lionel Messi as an adversary while the latter was still plying his trade at Barcelona.
Giggs and Messi faced off three times in the Champions League. The Argentine won two of the battles, while the Welshman won one.
While Giggs spent six years with Cristiano Ronaldo at Old Trafford, he believed his counterpart Lionel Messi was on another level to everyone else. He said his affinity for Ronaldo is because he played with him at Manchester United.
Giggs told DAZN (via GOAL):
"Obviously I lean towards Ronaldo a little bit because I played with him and saw him develop as a player. But Messi is a genius, he's a once in a lifetime player. It's as simple as that."
Messi and Ronaldo dominated football for more than a decade, sharing 13 Ballon d’Or awards between each other.
Dimitar Berbatov also said Lionel Messi is greater than Cristiano Ronaldo
Apart from Ryan Giggs, Dimitar Berbatov is another Manchester United player who threw his weight behind Lionel Messi in the never-ending ‘GOAT’ debate. Berbatov and Cristiano Ronaldo shared the locker room at Manchester United for a term as the Portuguese captain left the club the following season.
Despite playing together, Berbatov said that Messi is the ‘greatest’ footballer to play the game. He, however, acknowledged Ronaldo’s brilliance.
Berbatov said in an exclusive interview with ESPN:
''Because he's the f---ing greatest. Ronaldo is brilliant, Messi more my kind of player. He sees the game so clearly. He can score, create, he's the complete player, the best ever probably. If you ask someone older than me they will say Pele, Maradona or Puskas or Di Stefano. But for my generation it's Messi or Ronaldo. They're pretty much even, but something with Messi makes me shout 'Messi! Messi!' when I watch Barcelona on television."
It is important to note that Berbatov’s response came on the heels of being asked that Messi was decisive in their Champions League final clash with Barcelona in 2009. The Bulgarian man lamented being named on the bench in the clash.