2016 Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo was on cloud nine after receiving his fourth Ballon d’Or, edging closer to being level with his rival Lionel Messi. The Real Madrid star was declared winner of the prestigious award on Monday by France Football, an announcement that sent social media into a frenzy.
CR7 poses with the award on MondayThe celebrated superstar scooped the award with a landslide win – statistics show that he got more than double the votes Leo had. And moments after being named the world’s best player for the fourth time, the 31-year-old said the unthinkable...
In an interview with the award organizer France Football, CR7 revealed that he would love to play in the same team with the Argentine legend. Well, that sounds good in the world of football considering the sharp division among the fans of the two superstars. But then, his next statement was not taken lightly by a majority of Messi’s fans.
DID YOU KNOW?
.@Cristiano Ronaldo wins his 4th career Ballon d'Or and 3rd in the last 4 years.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 12, 2016
Only Lionel Messi (5) has won it more. pic.twitter.com/AYa1WIgMM7
When asked whether he would love to play alongside Leo, Ronaldo supported the idea and added that he would win more Ballon d’Ors than the Barca star, who is widely seen as the best footballer of all-time, by his fans. Here’s the full response:
''It would be interesting to see us both in the same team. I think the big players have to play together. So if we were in the same team, I think I would have more than he Ballons d'Or, but he (Messi) would not be far (behind).''
And as expected, CR7’s response, which sounded more of blasphemy than reality to Messi’s fans, was the subject of debate on social media. We have compiled some of the best reactions below:
If Ronaldo was on the same team as Messi he wouldn't even last a full season, he'd be gone in January due to being in Messi's shadow.
—(@juve93cule) December 13, 2016
Ronaldo: "If Messi and me were in the same team, I'd have won more Ballon d'Ors than him."
— Leo Messi (@messi10stats) December 13, 2016
pic.twitter.com/GN6yeHfZGh
Ronaldo: "If Messi and me were in the same team, I'd have won more Ballon d'Ors than him."
— Neymar Jr. (@NeyMarvellous) December 13, 2016
pic.twitter.com/VrV9zzuKEi
Ronaldo: "If Messi and I were in the same team, I'd have more Ballon d'Or than him"
— Messi World (@MessiWorId) December 13, 2016
If Messi had Mendes & Perez's media, he'd have 9 & you 1
But was there some truth in the statement provided by the Euro winner? Would he win more Ballon d’Ors than Messi if the two legends played in the same team? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page!