NEW DELHI: Manchester Metropolis supervisor Pep Guardiola‘s latest feedback on the historic rivalry between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have sparked a contemporary wave of dialogue and debate on this planet of soccer.
Talking at a pre-match press convention on Tuesday, the Spaniard opened up on a long-running rivalry between Messi and Ronaldo.
“Nobody might beat Messi, solely Cristiano. Cristiano was a monster and the daddy of that monster is Messi. The 2 have achieved one thing unimaginable within the final 20 years,” mentioned Guardiola.
Guardiola’s remarks got here on the again of the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony, the place Manchester Metropolis’s Rodri emerged because the winner, breaking the long-standing duopoly of Messi and Ronaldo.
The Spanish midfielder’s triumph was celebrated as a victory for Spanish soccer and a recognition of the often-overlooked function of midfielders within the sport.
Rodri’s win marked a major milestone, as he turned the primary defensive midfielder to assert the Ballon d’Or since Lothar Matthaus in 1990 and solely the third Spaniard to obtain the honour, following within the footsteps of Alfredo Di Stefano and Luis Suarez.
His win is especially noteworthy because it ends an extended drought for Spanish gamers within the Ballon d’Or rankings, with no Spaniard having gained the award since Luis Suarez in 1960, regardless of Spain’s “golden technology” reaching vital success on the worldwide stage.
“Perhaps Xavi and Iniesta deserved it at the moment, so I feel yesterday Rodri achieved what Spanish soccer deserved worldwide,” Guardiola additional added.
The 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony was massively dominated by Rodri’s compatriots, nationwide teammate Lamine Yamal profitable the Kopa Trophy for one of the best Below-21 participant, Aitana Bonmati securing the ladies’s Ballon d’Or for the second consecutive 12 months, and Jennifer Hermoso being honoured with the Socrates Award for her function within the battle for girls’s rights in soccer and her brave stance in opposition to sexism in sport.
