Football — also known as soccer to Americans — convinces the entire world to set aside all conflicts to prioritize the sport. Wars start and end over the impact soccer holds. The game’s universal form provides support for those with nothing to fall back on, with each player forging their own story and each ball flying on its journey. Every player leaves an impact on the game, but exceptional players leave their mark on history.
Generational players have risen and fallen every year since soccer’s inception but, occasionally, a single player arises whose touch with the ball reshapes the beautiful game. Players such as Zinedine Zidane, Diego Maradona, Ronaldo Nazario and Ronaldinho come to mind as the prototype of unprecedented talent, but two players encapsulate this soccer entity above all others. Lionel Andrés Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro have earned consideration as the two greatest players in soccer history, but only one player can hold the title of the game’s number-one player. Through player and manager opinions, the signs point out that Messi should gain recognition as soccer’s number one player. With prestigious achievements, near superhuman seasons and performances leaving jaws agape, Messi silences doubters through his feats and accomplishments.
Messi, born in Rosario, Argentina, June 24, 1987, began his career as an academy player for Newell’s Old Boys, eventually transferring to Barcelona after a successful scouting performance. From the inception of his soccer career, doctors told Messi he could never play professional soccer because he would never grow to the height of an average player. He rejected these opinions and carried on playing the sport he loved. Showing unprecedented potential in the academy, he immediately gained fame within Barcelona’s La Masia and senior players training center.
Messi debuted with the Barcelona senior team October 16, 2004, against Espanyol. Immediately proving his impact, Messi began to train with the Barcelona senior team and spend time with Brazilian superstar Ronaldinho. Messi scored a goal in his first season, becoming the youngest player in Barcelona history to do so and winning the La Liga title. Following the season, he would win the Champions League in 2006 after a promising campaign cut short by a muscle injury.
As the only player with 46 trophies, Messi won one FIFA World Cup, two Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL) Copa Americas, four UEFA Champions League finals, ten La Liga Titles, seven Copa Del Reys, three FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups and seven Supercopas De Espana. In personal awards and honors, Messi possesses eight Ballon d’Ors — three ahead of his main competitor Ronaldo — three FIFA Men’s Player of the Year, two Laureus Sportsperson of the Year, two UEFA Men’s Player of the Year, two FIFA World Cup Golden Balls, six UEFA Golden Boots and eight La Liga Golden Boots. Messi holds twelve records including number one in goals, assists and hat tricks in La Liga history, the highest number of appearances and goal contributions in World Cup history.
“Messi has to be the greatest player of all time. He can score, he can assist and if you put him in any team, they will become Champions League contenders. If you ask any top manager in Europe, they will tell you Messi is the greatest player of all time. He has the most assists all time, fresh out of the academy he became the best player in Barcelona, he’s won multiple Champions Leagues with Barcelona and he won a world cup, Ronaldo could not do the same,” junior Gavin Pinnock said.
Ronaldo, born in Madeira, Portugal February 5, 1985, initially began his career in the academy of Sporting Clube de Portugal, eventually moving to the senior squad in 2002. Born into an impoverished family, Ronaldo faced several hardships, including suffering from a heart condition that forced him to quit playing soccer until he received surgery.. Displaying unmatched scoring ability with Portuguese club Sporting, he transferred to English Premier League club Manchester United August 12, 2003, for £12 million.
Immediately displaying his technical prowess on the field, Ronaldo would score his first Premier League goal from a free kick. Within the same season, Ronaldo scored the opening goal for Manchester United in a 3-0 win over Portsmouth in the English Football Association (FA) cup final. Ronaldo would win his first-ever trophy in his debut season, the United European Football Association (UEFA) Champions League and his first Ballon d’Or in 2008. His unprecedented performance that season awarded him a record-breaking move to Real Madrid for €94 million, establishing a star-studded front line with him, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale.
Throughout his career, Ronaldo collected five UEFA Champions Leagues, four under Real Madrid, one UEFA European championship with the Portugal men’s national team, two La Liga titles, three UEFA Super Cups and four Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) club World Cups. While Ronaldo may not carry his weight in trophies, he possesses arguably the greatest scoring prowess in soccer history, with his dangerous shot finding the back of the net 907 times, an all-time record for goals scored, 140 of those goals came from the UEFA Champions League, the league’s record, and 133 came from the Portuguese national team, a national record, Ronaldo also holds the record as the only player to score in three Champions League finals and one of three players to score in every minute of a soccer game. Individually, Ronaldo holds five Ballon d’Ors, second to Messi. Ronaldo, the jewel of Madeira remains the one man capable of competing with Messi. With the goal-scoring and important matches to compare, Ronaldo establishes an argument as the one player to stand above all others, proving his worth through his blistering pace, hypnotic dribbling and long shots.
“Ronaldo has been the greatest player for years now, he possesses the greatest work ethic, he never stops trying to improve his game and he remains the best player on every team. He’s the most athletic player ever, he’s 39 now and still scoring goals in the Saudi Pro League and he won a trophy with them. In Europe, he has the most goals in the Champions League and he has won five finals, they do not call him ‘Mr. Champions League’ for nothing,” junior Diego Rivas said.
While the debate initially remained close due to Ronaldo’s international feats such as winning the Euro and tying with Messi for Ballon d’Or, Messi repeatedly widened the gap. By winning his sixth Ballon d’Or, he broke his tie with Ronaldo, winning his first Copa America and shutting down the criticisms of his international failures and eventually winning the World Cup, accomplishing what Ronaldo could not. While the debate remains open to anyone, the undeniable fact remains that Messi’s accomplishments far outweigh Ronaldo’s, establishing him as the player to stand atop the mountain of football.
