3 Lionel Messi teammates who have declared Cristiano Ronaldo the GOAT
Most of Lionel Messi’s teammates past and present are loyal to the Argentine when asked who’s better between him and Cristiano Ronaldo, but crucially not all of them.
The debate of the decade was settled in the eyes of many fans when Messi fired Argentina to the World Cup that eluded him and subsequently won an eighth Ballon d’Or, with Ronaldo stuck on five and without a World Cup to his name.
It’s not that simple, though, and we doubt it ever will be. We’ve highlighted three footballers who have shared the dressing room with Messi, but whose loyalty actually lies with Ronaldo.
Kylian Mbappe
Despite having the privilege of being teammates with Messi for two years at Paris Saint-Germain and giving the Argentine his flowers, Mbappe has made no secret of his idolisation of Ronaldo in the past.
He had posters of Ronaldo on his wall in his youth and there is even an image of a teenage Mbappe meeting the Portuguese in a Real Madrid tracksuit.
His former teammate Abdou Diallo lifted the lid when speaking to the Mail, explaining that Ronaldo is ‘literally everything’ to the Frenchman: “If you mention Lionel Messi against Cristiano, Mbappe will debate with you for at least an hour. For him, Cristiano is untouchable.”
Alejandro Garnacho
Born in Madrid to Argentine parents, it’s been difficult for Garnacho to pledge his allegiance to either Messi or Ronaldo growing up.
The winger has been compared endlessly to Ronaldo since breaking into the first-team at Manchester United and played alongside the forward when he returned to the club. Garnacho still copies Ronaldo’s celebrations from time to time, from his iconic ‘Siuuuuu’ to more subtle homages.
He even declared Ronaldo the GOAT on his Instagram in 2022, which was later followed by Lionel Messi unfollowing him. However, in the time since, Garnacho has made his senior Argentina debut, become teammates with Messi and tried to throw water on the fire in 2023 when quizzed on the debate by streamer IShowSpeed.
“They’re both great, bro. They’re both great.” Bottled it, Alejandro.
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Keylor Navas
There have been conflicting reports as to where specifically Navas’ loyalties lie. He first played with Ronaldo for several years at Real Madrid, winning multiple Champions Leagues with the Portuguese forward.
He later shared the dressing room with Messi when the Argentine made his shock move to PSG in 2021, where they were unable to achieve European success, but won Ligue 1 together.
Navas is quoted by DAZN – via Sportskeeda – as saying: “I have played with both Messi and Ronaldo, they are the best players on the planet, but I think Ronaldo is slightly better than Messi as he can do it outside his comfort zone.”
Given the Costa Rican’s most successful spell of his career was in Madrid with Ronaldo, it’s not a surprise that he sides with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.