Jamie Carragher has his say on the Messi-Ronaldo debate, reveals what sets the duo apart
What's the story?
Jamie Carragher, a Liverpool legend and a football pundit at the moment, has revealed which player he thinks is the greatest of all time or GOAT, in his Daily Telegraph column.
Comparing Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's match-winning performances in the RO16 UEFA Champions League fixtures for their respective clubs, the former England centre-back labelled Ronaldo as a great goalscorer but picked Messi as the undisputed all-time great.
In case you didn't know...
Ronaldo and Messi have both been in fine form for their clubs, with the Portuguese managing to score 19 goals for Juventus in the league, while Messi leads the European Golden Shoe race having found the back of the net 26 times in the LaLiga for Barcelona.
Both of the iconic players now have scored 20 or more goals in the last 11 seasons, with the former Manchester United star achieving the remarkable feat on two more occasions than his Argentine rival.
The heart of the matter
Jamie Carragher, himself a Champions League winner with Liverpool in 2005, was analyzing the chances of the Premier League clubs that have made it into the quarter-finals of the competition this season in his Telegraph column.
With all the four PL clubs making it into the last eight of the tournament for the first time since 2009, Carragher said that Manchester City have the strongest chance of claiming the title of European Champions this May, but warned that any English club will have to overcome the exceptional skill and motivation levels of Ronaldo and Messi.
He wrote in his column:
"They[Messi and Ronaldo] bring belief to their clubs and fear to opposition. The fact remains unless the English clubs can find a way to stop Ronaldo and Messi, this year's final will be Juventus versus Barcelona."
He also made a bold statement in the same column by distinguishing the most talented players of our time as a great goalscorer and the greatest player of all time. With Messi being his pick as the GOAT. He continued:
"Ronaldo and Messi -- the greatest goalscorer of all time and the greater player of all time -- show no sign of giving up their dominance of European competition, their individual displays in midweek further demonstrating their exceptional skill and motivation levels."
What's next?
With Juventus and Barcelona avoiding each other in the last eight draws, it is a very real possibility that Messi and Ronaldo can face each other in this year's final.