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Lionel Messi was not the only player Ronaldo Nazario named ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo in his all time top ten.
It is a discussion which is arguably the most divisive in football but no matter who comes first or second Messi and Ronaldo typically come as a pair.
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The Al Nassr forward said he has not seen a player better than himself, quipping 'you have to look at the numbers'.
He has scored 925 goals in for club and country - the highest tally in football history.
But his Real Madrid teammate of nine years, Karim Benzema said 'the best Ronaldo is from Brazil'.
Ronaldo netted 371 goals in 580 matches across his career.
However, when the original Ronaldo sat down with ESPN he revealed he has two Argentinians and three Brazilians ahead of the Portuguese superstar.
When asked to name his top ten he replied: “Pele number 1 without a doubt, Messi and Diego Maradona tied together, Zico, Romario, Cristiano Ronaldo, Marco van Basten, Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho.
"A series of players, there are many great players on this list, and I'm sure I'm forgetting some.
“Every time someone asks me about this ranking, I make a different list. Only these first three are definitive.”
A name he surprisingly missed out in his initial top ten was Neymar but he corrected himself and restated: “He may be missing the World Cup, but he has won the Olympics, almost everything but he is definitely in the top ten too.”
Ronaldo is clearly a very patriotic football fan which is why he aims to replace Ednaldo Rodrigues as CBF president.
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Rodrigues’ term runs until March 2026 but the election must take place 12 months before - no date is set.
Brazil is the most successful national football team having won five World Cups and nine Copa Americas.
But in recent times they have been a shadow of themselves, not winning a major tournament since 2019.
At the 2022 World Cup Brazil faltered in the quarter-finals, losing 4-2 on penalties to Croatia after playing out a 1-1 draw.
The same stage and scoreline they lost to Uruguay at the 2024 Copa America.
“I have this new project, which, in my mind, is very complicated, very difficult, but not impossible,” Ronaldo said
“I will use all my power, all my strength, to once again help Brazilian football improve.
Ex-Real Madrid President Ramon Calderon compares Kylian Mbappe to Cristiano Ronaldo and claims the frenchman is one of the best in the world
He continued: “The current situation is terrible. We may never have been as down in the dumps as we are today in Brazilian football and in general.
“Not only in terms of sports results, but also in the management of the CBF, there are problems every day.
“Referees, viewership of games, the public's interest in the sport that is a national passion... It is unacceptable.
“I will dedicate myself a lot during this pre-election period to be able to achieve my goal of becoming president of the CBF and getting Brazilian football back on track.”
