Former Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney has settled the greatest of all time (GOAT) debate.
Rooney’s former teammate, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Lionel Messi are widely considered to be the two greatest players to have ever played the game, with 13 Ballon d’Or crowns between them.
The former England captain shared a dressing room with Ronaldo, 40, between 2004 and 2009, having played together 205 times for the Red Devils before the Portuguese left for Real Madrid.
However, despite enjoying success together, the pair didn’t always see eye to eye.
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Back in the 2006 World Cup, the pair were involved in an incident which led to Rooney being sent off in the quarter-final between England and Portugal.
Although Rooney explained how he cleared the air immediately after the match.
“I went over to him afterwards in the tunnel,” Rooney told The Times in 2020. "I felt it was important to speak to him while it was still fresh and to do it face to face.
"He gave me a look as if to say sorry, but by then, I had my United head on."
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"In the dressing room, we were always really close,” Rooney added. “It was always the two of us doing pranks on the manager or other players. And what had happened brought us closer together on the pitch.”
As for Messi, he never played with Rooney, but the duo did face each other on three occasions, with the Argentinian winning twice – the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals – and drawing once – the 2008 Champions League semi-final.
But who does Rooney consider to be the best of all time?
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Well, speaking on The Overlap, brought to you by Sky Bet, in May 2024, he described both players as “incredible”.
“I understand that people can say Messi, people can say Ronaldo – they are both incredible, probably the best two players to ever play the game,” said Rooney.
Rooney gave an updated take on the GOAT debate when playing a game of ‘winner stays on’ via Prime Video.
When asked “Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo?” he quickly answered “Lionel Messi”.
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“For me, Messi has just got that little bit more flair, which I like in a player, so that's the reason,” he told the Overlap when explaining why he prefers Messi.
Topics: Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Manchester United, England, Champions League
Luke Alfred Davies