I Don’t Dislike Ronaldo – Gary Lineker

England legend Gary Lineker has once again weighed in on the eternal Lionel Messi versus Cristiano Ronaldo debate. He recently had his say while speaking to the press, and fans have been reacting.

Insisting that placing the Argentine above the Portuguese is simply a matter of footballing fact rather than a personal insult, Lineker shared that his unwavering stance on the GOAT debate caused a personal rift with Ronaldo.

Gary concluded by saying that, despite continuously stressing that Messi operates on an entirely different level, he has deep respect for the legendary Portuguese goalscorer.

His words, “Of my lifetime. I never thought I’d see a better player than Diego. He might not necessarily be a better player, but he’s lived better therefore he has had greater longevity. And I think you have to take that into account.

I mean, I just can’t explain how good he is, because he does stuff, he’d do four or five things in a game that I wouldn’t have done in one game in my entire career. And I played, you know, at the top.

He plays like he’s watching himself from above. Take away all the goals and the dribbles and stuff. His passing and his vision, I just don’t know how it’s humanly possible. It’s just bizarre. But I just got so much time for him. He’s given me 20 years of joy watching him.

I always feel bad because people have a go at me because they say, “oh, you don’t like Ronaldo”. It’s not that I don’t like Ronaldo. I absolutely think he’s an incredible footballer, but there’s no argument about who is the better footballer. Anyone that understands the game will see that.

But I’ve got so much admiration for Christiano, because he’s so driven and his career has been so successful and he’s scored so many goals. In many eras, he’d be the best player of his time.

But the fact that he’s actually putting the same breath and lots of people do make the comparison is a huge compliment to him, really, of what he’s achieved. Because he hasn’t got the ability that Messi has. No one has. But it’s not an insult to Ronaldo to say that.”

WOW.

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro GOIH ComM is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward for and captains both Saudi Pro League club, Al Nassr and the Portugal national team.

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro was born on 5 February 1985 in the São Pedro parish of Funchal, the capital of the Portuguese island of Madeira, and grew up in the nearby parish of Santo António. He is the fourth and youngest child of Maria Dolores dos Santos Viveiros da Aveiro, who worked as a cook in the hospitality industry and a cleaning woman, and José Dinis Aveiro, a municipal gardener at the Junta de Freguesia of Santo António and part-time kit man for football club Andorinha.

Ronaldo’s move to Manchester United was completed on 12 August 2003, too late for the 2003 FA Community Shield but in time for their game against Bolton Wanderers on the opening day of the 2003–04 season, and made him the first Portuguese player to sign for the club.

Ahead of the 2009–10 season, Ronaldo joined Real Madrid for a world record transfer fee at the time of £80 million (€94 million). His contract, which ran until 2015, was worth €11 million per year and contained a €1 billion buy-out clause.