Zlatan Ibrahimovic gives his verdict on Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
The one question that has been repeatedly asked within the footballing fraternity - with no conclusion in sight as of now - pertains to who the better player is between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
When Gazetta dello Sport posed the question to legendary player Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2019, the Swede had a unique take on the debate.
"We will see where they are when they are my age. At 35, I was at United. It was not easy but, in my first season, we won three titles, breaking forecasts. You don't know how many haters I have."
"I admire Cristiano Ronaldo. He works very hard and has played everywhere, but in Italy it's different. I'm not surprised that he scores less than before."
Zlatan Ibrahimovic also called Lionel Messi a 'unique' talent.
"About Leo (Lionel Messi), what to say? He is a unique talent and is at home. For me, he will never change teams."
Cristiano Ronaldo begins the Serie A season with a bang
35-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo has, thus far, displayed no signs of slowing down despite his advanced years. He has kicked off the 2020-21 season with a bang, scoring three goals and assisting one in just two appearances so far.
The Portuguese forward has fit in seamlessly in new Juventus manager Andrea Pirlo's tactical setup, playing as one of two forwards in a 3-at-the-back system.
Juventus eased to a 3-0 win over Sampdoria with Cristiano Ronaldo getting his team's third goal in the Bianconeri's first Serie A game of the season. The iconic goalscorer was at it again in Juventus' second match against AS Roma, scoring both goals - one of them coming from a trademark gravity-defying header - in a 2-2 draw.
The goals have now put Cristiano Ronaldo within striking distance of Pele's all-time goal-scoring record. The legendary Brazilian has 757 recognised goals to his name while Ronaldo is just 15 behind, with 742.
If Cristiano Ronaldo can keep up his current clip of goal-scoring - which has seen him notch up 24 goals in this calendar year in the process of outscoring every other player in Europe's top-five leagues - it could only be a matter of time before he claims the outright record before the end of the 2020-21 season.