Ronaldo Nazário's response when asked if Cristiano Ronaldo is the best in history

Legendary Brazilian footballer Ronaldo Nazário has spoken out about a topic that has sparked debate in the world of football : Cristiano Ronaldo 's statements about considering himself the best player in history. During an interview with ESPN Brasil , the former player expressed his opposing stance: “I don't agree that he's the best, people have a very high self-esteem, right?”

Cristiano Ronaldo's comments caused a stir among fans and his fellow players. The striker had defended his place in history by saying that he was the best footballer of all time . This kind of statement did not go unnoticed, and various football figures, such as Frenchman Karim Benzema, reacted. The Al Ittihad striker from Saudi Arabia commented: "If he thinks he is the best, fine, but for me he is Ronaldo of Brazil."

In his analysis, the Brazilian highlighted the undeniable achievements of the Portuguese star, recognizing his impact on the sport . On this, he told ESPN Brasil: “Cristiano has a fantastic history. He has achieved wonderful things, he has scored goals in all ways and even changing positions, from the left to the center, which is not an easy thing.” However, he took distance : “I prefer people to talk about my performance for what I have done, what I have been, than me talking about myself.”

Beyond this difference of opinion, the former Barcelona and Real Madrid striker accepted that Cristiano, in his opinion, is easily among the top ten. Consequently, the interviewer asked Ronaldo to make his list. And CR7, still active at 40 years old with the Al Nassr jersey, was relegated from the top.

“He is not the best. I don’t agree, even though I respect his opinion. It is difficult to put together a world ranking of players. Pelé is number one, for sure. Messi and Maradona, tied, together, ” he did not hesitate. After taking a few seconds, he extended the list with several names in a row, but almost without making a classification. “Zico, Romario, Cristiano Ronaldo, Van Basten... There are many players... Zidane, Figo, Rivaldo...” he listed. And in that package was the striker who emerged from Sporting Lisbon.

Cristiano's main asset, besides his titles, is that he now holds the throne of all-time top scorer and is on track to reach 1,000 goals as a professional : he has scored 925 goals and provided 257 assists in 1,265 games. The figures are shared between Real Madrid (450 goals), Manchester United (145 goals), the Portuguese national team (135 goals), Juventus (101 goals), Sporting Lisbon (5 goals) and Al Nassr (89 goals).

Behind him comes Messi, with 852 goals and 381 assists in the 1,086 professional appearances he had in his career between Barcelona (672 goals and 269 assists in 778 games), PSG (32 goals and 34 assists in 75 games), Inter Miami (36 goals and 20 assists in 42 games) and the Argentine national team (112 goals and 58 assists in 191 games).