In an interview with BBC Sport, Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed that he is the best player in the world, and that his numbers speak for themselves
For those that haven’t been on Earth for the last 10 years, Cristiano Ronaldo is a very good footballer. In fact, he could be considered the best footballer. For many he is the best footballer, not just now, but of all time. The only issue is the presence of this one guy named Lionel Messi, who is also very good at football. It has been a long-raging debate between Ronaldo fans and Messi fans as to who is the better footballer, and Ronaldo believes he has the answer.
While speaking to Dan Roan of BBC Sport, Ronaldo argued that the numbers prove he is the best player in the world.
"“I don’t need to say ‘I’m in the history of football, I’m a legend’. The numbers say everything. I don’t need to say ‘I’m in the history of football, I’m a legend’. The numbers say everything. In my mind, I’m always the best. I don’t care what people think, what they say. In my mind, not just this year but always, I’m always the best. It’s opinions, I respect the opinions. Maybe in your opinion Messi is better than me, but in my mind I am better than him. So it’s simple.”"
Clearly, Ronaldo is not the most humble of people. However, he has the confidence in his talent to make such a claim. And, while it is a big claim to make of yourself, the numbers of his career are extremely impressive. He has scored a ridiculous 504 goals across 760 career games, with 326 of those goals coming while at Real Madrid in a stupendously low 314 games. A ratio of over a goal-a-game is unbelievable, and truly reflects the quality that Ronaldo possesses. He is a three-time world player of the year and is Real’s record goal scorer.
In comparison, Lionel Messi is a four-time world player of the year, scoring 467 goals in 597 career matches and is considered the greatest player of his generation. Ronaldo talks about opinions, and clearly makes his known.
Whether you think Ronaldo or Messi has the edge, one thing that cannot be denied is that Cristiano Ronaldo is backing himself.