'The god of soccer' Lionel Messi (39, Inter Miami) described his relationship with lifelong rival Cristiano Ronaldo (41, Al Nassr) as a 'beautiful sporting rivalry.'
On the 9th (Korean time), according to the British Daily Mail, Messi opened up about his honest feelings regarding the rivalry with Ronaldo, which had divided the football world for the past 20 years, in an interview with Argentine journalist Polo Alvarez.
Messi and Ronaldo traded the Ballon d'Or back and forth for years, each rising to and falling from the top. Ultimately, Messi, who led Argentina to a World Cup victory, has eight awards, while Ronaldo has five, widening the gap.
Ahead of el clásico between his former team Barcelona and Real Madrid on the 11th, Messi recalled his relationship with Ronaldo, saying, We went through a beautiful sporting rivalry, and this is perfectly natural in football.
He added, I was at Barcelona and he was at Real Madrid, and because we competed for every team and individual honor, people always compared us.
Messi emphasized, But our relationship was always good and respectful. Everything happened purely within the realm of sport, and there were no personal feelings at all.
Messi is currently preparing for his sixth World Cup finals. The same goes for Ronaldo, who will represent Portugal. The two could face each other again on the World Cup stage wearing the Argentina and Portugal jerseys, respectively.
Messi reiterated, We did not meet often outside of matches or ceremonies, but we always maintained a good relationship. Now we are at different stages of our lives, but what we experienced was a beautiful sporting rivalry.
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