Hyderabad: Settling down a decade-long debate regarding who is the Greatest of All--Time, Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo acknowledged that he has no problems in admitting that a certain group of people might prefer his all-time rival Argentina's Lionel Messi over him, but denied the agreement when someone says that he isn't a 'complete footballer'. Ronaldo also claimed that he is the best in the business and hasn't seen anyone better than him in football history.
"I think I'm the most complete football player that has ever existed. People could like Messi, Maradona or Pele, and I respect it, but I'm the most complete. I'm the best player in football history. I haven't seen anyone better than me in football history and I'm saying truth from my heart," Ronaldo said in an interview with Spanish media outlet LaSexta TV.
During the interview, the 40-year-old also disclosed that he and Messi never had a 'bad relationship' over the last 15 years in which they created a football duopoly.
"I've never had a bad relationship with Messi. We've shared 15 years of awards, and we've always gotten along well. I remember that I used to translate English for him, and it was very funny," says Cristiano. "He defended his club and I mine, and his national team and I mine. I think we gave each other feedback. There were years when he wanted to play everything, and so did I. It was a healthy fight," the Portuguese veteran added.
When asked if he is the best player in history, Ronaldo gave a typical response, highlighting his goal-scoring prowess. "There are some things that don't make sense. What does a goalscorer mean? It's someone who puts the ball in the goal," the Al-Nassr player quipped. "I think I'm the most complete player that has ever existed. I do everything in football. I play well with my head, I take good free kicks, I have a left foot, a right foot, I'm strong, I go out..."
Ronaldo, who has scored 921 goals in his career so far, wants to achieve the elusive 1,000-goal mark before drawing the curtain on his illustrious career, with incredible standards being maintained with Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr. He also remains the talismanic captain of his country, with the target being found on 135 occasions through 217 appearances for Portugal.
