Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? When Manuel Neuer made his pick between the GOATs
Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer once made his choice between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, having faced both legends multiple times during his illustrious career.
Manuel Neuer is one of the best modern-day custodians in the game, while Messi and Ronaldo are arguably two of the best players in history. The duo is still going strong despite playing for nearly two decades.
Neuer has had many a battle with Messi and Ronaldo. The 38-year-old has won five of his six matches with Messi for club and country, with one of the wins being Germany's 1-0 extra time win over Messi's Argentina in the 2014 FIFA World Cup final. The only loss came in a UEFA Champions League semi-final with Barcelona in the 2014-15 season, which Neuer's Bayern Munich lost 3-0.
Meanwhile, Neuer has had mixed success against Ronaldo, winning five of nine matches across competitions for club and country, losing four. Three of those wins came with Germany against Ronaldo's Portugal, while all four losses came in the Champions League when the Portuguese was at Real Madrid.
In a fun 'You have to Answer' ESPN segment in August 2022, Neuer had to choose between two players or teams. One of the questions was about Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo; the German went with:
"Messi"
The entire segment went as follows:
Skiing or Tennis: Skiing
Roger Federer or Boris Becker: Becker
Basketball or Golf: Basketball
Breakfast or Dinner: Dinner
German food or Italian food: Italian food
Berlin or Frankfurt: Berlin
Miami or LA: LA
Save a penalty or save a one-on-one: Both
Michael Fassbender or Leonardo Di Caprio: Fastbender
Dirk Nowitzki or LeBron James: Dirk Nowitzki
U2 or The Beattles: U2
France or Italy: Italy
New shoes or new haircut: Shoes
Wembley or Stade de France: Wembley
Gerd Muller or Franz Beckenbauer: Franz Beckenbauer
World Cup or the Champions League: Champions League
Messi or Ronaldo: Messi
Jens Lehmann or Oliver Kahn: Lehmann
Ronaldo and Messi are set to be in action for their respective countries during the ongoing October international break.
What's next for Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi?
On Friday (October 11), Ronaldo is expected to feature for Portugal against Poland in Warsaw in the UEFA Nations League, having won their opening two games.
Meanwhile, Messi is set to play for Argentina in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier at Venezuela a day earlier. Lionel Scaloni's side are the table-toppers in the CONMEBOL standings, leading second-placed Colombia (16) by two points after eight games, winning six.
Cristiano Ronaldo made history during the September international break, becoming the first player to score 900 times for club and country. Meanwhile, Lionel Messi is returning to the international fold for the first time after sustaining an ankle injury in the 1-0 extra time win over Colombia in the 2024 Copa America final in July.