"Might edge it" - When Paolo Maldini picked between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
Former Italy defender Paolo Maldini once made his pick between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The duo are widely regarded as two of the best ever in the beautiful game's history.
Despite approaching 40, both players have shown little signs of slowing down anytime soon, having each scored over 800 goals for club and country in their illustrious careers spanning nearly two decades.
Among numerous accolades, Messi (eight) and Ronaldo have won a staggering 13 Ballon d'Or awards between them and big titles galore for club and country over the years.
Meanwhile, Maldini - himself regarded as one of the best in his position in history - said in January this year that Messi slightly edges the GOAT debate over Ronaldo (via talkSPORT):
“I know Messi very well and I know Ronaldo very well, who have between them won the Ballon d’Or for the past ten years. Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi? In my opinion, Messi might edge it, but Ronaldo is also a top player and a strong individual. But I prefer Messi.”
While Maldini crossed paths with Ronaldo when he was at Manchester United in the 2000s, he never did so against Messi before calling time on his 25-year career in 2009. He said that he was 'lucky' that Messi was injured, so he never met the Argentine on the field:
"I didn’t play against Messi because he was injured, thank God he was injured. I was lucky."
A one-club man, Maldini retired after playing a whopping 902 times for Milan.
How Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have fared in international football?
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have scored goals galore. With 130 and 109 strikes respectively, the duo are the most prolific scorers in men's international football.
While Ronaldo has notched up his tally in 212 games, he drew blanks in his last five outings. All of them came at Euro 2024 in Germany - where Portugal crashed out to France on penalties in the quarter-finals - as Ronaldo drew a blank at a major tournament for the first time in 11 appearances.
Meanwhile, Messi has played 187 times for Argentina but scored only once in five games in their victorious 2024 Copa America campaign. The forward, though, was plagued by injury, coming off with a swollen ankle in the 1-0 extra-time win over Colombia in the final.
In terms of trophies, Messi edges Ronaldo 4-2, winning two Copa Americas, the FIFA World Cup and the Finalissima, while the latter has one European Championship and the UEFA Nations League.