The debate surrounding who is the greatest of all time in any sport is a tough one, and one that fans tend to either sit on one side of the fence or the other. In basketball, you’re either team Michael Jordan or team Lebron James. In the NFL, it’s either Tom Brady or Jerry Rice. In football, you can choose Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. Very rarely do people say both.

The combined 13-time Ballon d’Or winners have revolutionised the sport in a way that no duo has ever done previously. Had they been in any other era, there would be no doubts about the fact that they were the greatest of their generation. That’s not how life panned out though, and the debate still rages on. Fans across the globe will have their opinions, as will players. These 15 Premier League stars also think they know the answer as to who is the true GOAT.

Premier League Stars Pick Messi or Ronaldo

Player
Club
Messi or Ronaldo?

Kevin De Bruyne
Manchester City
Cristiano Ronaldo

Trent Alexander-Arnold
Liverpool
Lionel Messi

Romelu Lukaku
Chelsea
Cristiano Ronaldo

Virgil Van Dijk
Liverpool
Lionel Messi

Bukayo Saka
Arsenal
Cristiano Ronaldo

Declan Rice
Arsenal
Lionel Messi

Julian Alvarez
Manchester City
Lionel Messi

Bruno Fernandes
Manchester United
Cristiano Ronaldo

Jamie Vardy
Leicester City
Lionel Messi

Bernardo Silva
Manchester City
Cristiano Ronaldo

Erling Haaland
Manchester City
Lionel Messi

Casemiro
Manchester United
Cristiano Ronaldo

Mohamed Salah
Liverpool
Lionel Messi

Josko Gvardiol
Manchester City
Lionel Messi

Cole Palmer
Chelsea
Lionel Messi

There are some crazy shouts in this list, with Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Pele and Diego Maradona all featuring.

Team Messi

Stars such as Erling Haaland and Declan Rice were in favour of the Argentine

The Argentinian superstar has left an impact not just on fans and the sport on the whole, but also on the players he has come up against in his famed career. One such name to label Messi as his greatest ever opponent is Liverpool vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold. The England international spoke in glowing terms about the 37-year-old, professing that he couldn’t comprehend the idea of someone being better than the winningest world player of the year:

“The best has to be Messi for me. Best player I’ve played against. The best player that’s ever played the game. I never watched Maradona. To imagine anyone better than what I’ve been able to see [from Messi], my brain doesn’t comprehend it. There’s no way anyone can be better than him.”

The sentiment is shared by teammates Virgil Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah, with the latter stating it is not even up for debate anymore following Argentina’s 2022 World Cup victory.

Despite being a Manchester United fan growing up, Chelsea star Cole Palmer also didn’t hold back on his assertions when picking between the two ‘GOAT’ candidates:

“Just the way he plays, everything he’s won, all the individual trophies… just the best player ever.

“Messi’s clear for me, but obviously Ronaldo’s one of the greatest players ever as well.”

Messi’s international teammate, Julian Alvarez, also chose his colleague, as did fellow Manchester City stars Josko Gvardiol and Erling Haaland. With comparisons often being made to the Norwegian being the Ronaldo to Mbappe’s Messi in this generation, it may come as a surprise to hear the forward, who shares many similarities to the Portuguese star, go the other way.

Arsenal centrepiece Declan Rice and Leicester City veteran Jamie Vardy also went the same way. Whilst Vardy spoke of what it was like playing against Messi, it was the Gunner who spoke more eloquently about just how special the little magician is:

“It is such a hard question because obviously what Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have done is a freak of nature, nobody will ever do that ever again. Messi, I just feel what he does with a football, he is just special, and I don’t think we will ever see a player like that ever again.”

Team Ronaldo

Kevin De Bruyne and Bukayo Saka gave their support to Ronaldo

Despite all the love for the former Barcelona and PSG hero, one of the greatest ever Premier League players decided to sit on the other side of the fence and stated that if there was any player he would love to play with, it would be Ronaldo. Kevin De Bruyne might be loyal to the blue side of Manchester, but his admiration for the former Red Devil was clear when he said:

“I would probably say Ronaldo because he’s more of a typical striker. Messi is still more of a playmaker. I am a playmaker, you can give me a striker.”

His opinion is shared by teammate Bernardo Silva, who has played alongside Ronaldo on international duty. As has Bruno Fernandes, with the Manchester United captain claiming that the greatest goalscorer of all time had nothing left to prove, having dominated in every top league he had been a part of.

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For the amount Ronaldo is paid every week, you could build a world-class team that would be unstoppable.

Romelu Lukaku also went for CR7, with the Belgian target man appreciative of a player who is similarly as dangerous in and around the six-yard box as he is. The same was also said by former Real Madrid and Manchester United teammate Casemiro, who claimed he was grateful to have never had to play against the 39-year-old during his career.

Perhaps the most surprising star to opt for Ronaldo is Bukayo Saka. Just as Haaland shares similarities with the striker but chose his Argentine counterpart, Saka’s ability with the ball at his feet is more reminiscent to La Pulga. However, growing up watching the former Manchester United starlet stayed with the Englishman as he entered the game:

“Obviously, when I was younger, he was my idol, but now that I’m playing football professionally, I have even more respect for him, how he’s managed to stay this disciplined and this focused and achieve everything he’s achieved, so yeah he’s special.”