The debate between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the greatest gifts that soccer has given its fans. It has divided opinions over the years not only among fans but also among their peers and teammates.
This time around, it is Ronaldo’s former teammate, Mesut Ozil, who has had his pick between the two. Ozil’s answer might come as a shock to Ronaldo who is already suffering from a crisis with Georgina Rodriguez.
Ozil was recently asked about who he would choose between Ronaldo and Messi. The German was confused but took the name of the Argentinian and explained that this was because of Messi’s recent achievement, the FIFA World Cup 2022.
“Messi or Ronaldo?”
Mesut Özil 🗣️ : “It’s a difficult question.. but I will choose Messi, because he won the World Cup.” 👏pic.twitter.com/LbMD2iL3Um
— Team Leo (@TeamLeo10i) May 6, 2023
He answered: “It’s a difficult question… but I will choose Messi because he won the World Cup.”
Ozil is among the hundreds of players who have picked between the two. Norwegian dynamite, Erling Haaland previously had his say on the topic. It is quite incredible how the argument has shifted toward Messi ever since he won the World Cup in Qatar.
Ronaldo would feel betrayed after hearing Ozil’s answer. The duo was part of the incredible Real Madrid team in the early 2010s before Ozil moved to Arsenal in 2013. This would have surely added to Ronaldo’s miseries who is allegedly fed up with his partner.
Mesut Ozil supported Cristiano Ronaldo when nobody did
Even though Ozil has picked Messi over Ronaldo, he had Ronaldo’s back when nobody else did. The former Real Madrid playmaker had a very supportive message for Ronaldo during Portugal’s World Cup crisis.
The crisis emerged after it was reported that Ronaldo had threatened to leave the national team after being benched by Fernando Santos. This was denied later on but not before pundits and media had attacked Ronaldo viciously.
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Ozil took to Instagram to support his former teammate and 5-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo. He stated that people should consider themselves lucky for having witnessed Ronaldo in his prime.
He wrote: “He is soon 38 years old – so what’s the surprise that he doesn’t score 50 goals a season anymore? Every football fan out there should be happy to have seen him playing world-class football for 20 years – I don’t think anyone from the new generation will be able to match his numbers again. He will forever be in his own category.”
Ozil and Ronaldo formed a deadly partnership at Real Madrid under Jose Mourinho. They shared a huge bond before Ozil’s transfer but the German didn’t forget his buddy in the time of need.
Ozil recently announced his retirement after a brilliant career with several teams. The playmaker had fallen out of favor with Mikel Arteta at Arsenal before moving to Fenerbahçe and finally ending his career at İstanbul Başakşehir.