Pele gave the perfect answer when asked to pick between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the GOAT debate

Pele was once asked who was better between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Messi and Ronaldo have dominated that last two decades of football, with the pair having collectively racked up some 13 Ballon d’Ors.

They are certainly the two greatest players of their generation, while they have entrenched themselves among football’s best players in history.

However, there has been much debate regarding who of the pair is the superior player.

When the late-Pele was asked to choose which he preferred between Messi and Ronaldo, the three-time World Cup winner first insisted that the likes of Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona and Zico should be celebrated in a similar manner.

Pele told SporTV in 2018: "It's sad that you have only two players in the world to choose from, Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona, Pele, Zico, Junior.

“All over the world now there are only two players. And Neymar, right? Our Brazilian is getting there."

However when pushed for a preference, Pele said: "I would still stay with Messi.

“Scoring is important, no doubt, but if you do not have anyone to prepare, then the ball is not enough.

“For my team, I prefer Messi. As for Cristiano Ronaldo, he's a great goalscorer.

“Ronaldo's been able to score goals, while you see Messi creating goals and directing the play, as well as scoring.

Pele is among the most iconic players in history (Getty)

“Ronaldo's a great goalscorer, but in terms of the complete player, there's no doubt that Messi is the best."

Pele, meanwhile, can also stake a claim as the greatest player of all time. The Brazilian was named Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee in 1999 and included in the Time list of the 100 most important people of the 20th century.

Moreover, in 2000 Pele was voted World Player of the Century by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics and was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the Century, alongside Maradona.