"I think he’s just the best" - When Frank Lampard picked between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in best opponent discussion
Chelsea legend Frank Lampard's old comments regarding the Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo debate paint an interesting picture. The former midfielder was talking to Coral (via Daily Star) in 2021 when he was asked to name his two best opponents.
While Lampard played against Ronaldo when the forward won the Ballon d'Or with Manchester United before moving to Real Madrid, he didn't name the Portuguese among his two best opponents. He instead named Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho.
Lampard reasoned that he picked Messi because he thinks the Argentine is the best player.
“There’s two that I would say – one is Messi, because I think he’s just the best,” he said.
He then named Ronaldinho as the second-best player he had played against. The former Chelsea manager argued that he realized the Brazilian was "a player on a different planet" when the Blues faced off against Barcelona in the 2004/05 Champions League Round of 16.
“The other one is Ronaldinho, because in 2005, we went to the Nou Camp, it was my first encounter of a player on a different planet. Him an Eto’o on that day, but particularly Ronaldinho’s movements, I was like, wow, this is different,” the former everton" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">Everton boss added.
Chelsea went on to win the Round of 16 tie 5-4 on aggregate despite losing the first leg at Camp Nou 2-1.
Why Frank Lampard chose Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho over Cristiano Ronaldo
Frank Lampard went on to explain during the same interview why he did not pick Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho. He said that he did not face the Portuguese superstar while he was at his peak, indicating that he was at his absolute best at Real Madrid.
“I didn’t play Ronaldo at his peak. I played him at Man United and he was getting towards it, but not in those years at Madrid, where he was just ridiculous,” Lampard said.
Earth is 4.5 billion years old and we‘re lucky enough to be alive to watch Messi & Ronaldo playing football🥹 https://t.co/L36fpp8Nlq
Lampard is currently out of job after getting the sack by Everton last month. The Toffees have since replaced him with Sean Dyche.