Cristiano Ronaldo may be regarded as one of the greatest soccer players of all time, but that did not stop Ronaldo Nazario from excluding him from his list of all-time greats. The Brazilian is regarded as perhaps the most gracious player in soccer history, with his career taking him to some of the biggest clubs in the world, including Inter, Barcelona, Real Madrid, and AC Milan.
Ronaldo was recently asked to name his team of the greatest XI in football history, and one name missed out on the list, surprising many fans and cementing their claim that the Brazilian had never liked his namesake. Cristiano Ronaldo, sadly, did not make the Brazilian list, but did Messi? Let’s find out.
Ronaldo excludes Cristiano Ronaldo from the best XI in football history
Cristiano Ronaldo was surprisingly excluded from Ronaldo’s list of the greatest XI in football history. The two-time World Cup winner chose a backline consisting of legendary Italian goalkeeper Gigi Buffon, another Brazilian legend, Cafu, German legend Franz Beckenbauer, Paolo Maldini, and Real Madrid legend Roberto Carlos. The backline wasn’t the easiest choice for Ronaldo, as he excluded Dida, the goalkeeper he won everything with, from his list.
With a 4-4-2 formation on the card, Ronaldo opted for two holding midfielders, with the second one coming as a surprise, considering how much of a playmaker he was in his days. Ronaldo went with another Brazilian legend, Zico, and the legendary Diego Maradona as his two midfielders. On the right wing, Ronaldo chose another World Cup winner and someone who’s considered the greatest player in history, Lionel Messi. He chose Ronaldinho to play on the left wing, with himself and Pele as the two forwards.
Recently-married Ronaldo was Brazil’s second-all-time record goalscorer, only behind Pele until Neymar recently broke Pele’s record, taking Ronaldo back to third. Cristiano Ronaldo might not have made Ronaldo Nazario’s list, but his achievements in football are nothing short of legendary.
Did Ronaldo ever play with Cristiano Ronaldo?
Many believe Ronaldo Nazario’s list is full of names of players he played with, but that’s not true. While Ronaldo never played with Cristiano Ronaldo despite playing for Real Madrid at some points in their careers, he did not play with some names on his list, including Messi, Buffon, Beckenbauer, Maradona, and Pele.
Ronaldo joined Madrid in 2002, playing for the Spanish giants until 2007, two years before the club spent the world’s record transfer fee to bring Cristiano Ronaldo to the Santiago Bernabeu from Manchester United. Cristiano Ronaldo went on to become Real Madrid’s all-time goalscorer with 451 goals in 438 games for the club.
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