Even in retirement from international football, Cristiano Ronaldo finished second behind Lionel Messi, according to Martin Lipton, the prominent journalist at Britain's "The Sun".
Two months after Messi confirmed he would never wear the blue and white again, Ronaldo chose to follow him into the history books.
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Messi walked away with a full set of medals and titles. He broke his long silence by winning the 2021 Copa America, then dominated the 2022 World Cup and retained the continental crown afterwards. Ronaldo's Portugal cabinet, Lipton argues, looks a good deal emptier.
The writer added: "No one of sound mind denies Ronaldo's standing. He is, without doubt, one of the greatest players of all time. He is a force of nature and an exceptional genius, and what he achieved in titles with clubs, as well as his character, will never be forgotten. But in the Portugal shirt, things did not go as they should have, and it is both sad and expected to see everything end amid a dispute with Portugal's new coach, Jorge Jesus."
He continued: "Yes, he started the Euro 2016 final in which Portugal beat France, but he only played 25 minutes before a knee injury forced him off. He was also part of the team that won the Nations League title twice, in 2019 and 2025. But on the biggest stage of all, across six World Cup tournaments and 27 matches, his tally of 11 goals never came close to the success he craves, except in his first appearance in 2006, when Portugal lost the semi-final to France."
"A bitter ending"
There was no glorious farewell in the United States. A career spanning 23 years, 234 matches and 146 goals ended in bitterness instead.
Messi closed out two decades with Argentina to trumpets and flowers. Ronaldo bowed out of his national team after an enormous dispute.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni shed tears, merely at the thought of waving off his icon.
Ronaldo signed off with one last deliberate snub to Jesus. It came less than a week after his 30-day "suspension" ended, punishment for leaving the national team camp during the previous international break, and "the Don" left any mention of his technical director out of the farewell message entirely.
All of this landed just one day before Jesus announced his latest squad, perhaps without Ronaldo in it.
Lipton added: "No Portuguese player, not even the great Eusebio, has dominated the national conversation in this way. And perhaps no one ever will. But you have to believe that Ronaldo will end up regretting his attempt to ignore the one opponent no player can beat: time. And whatever tributes are offered to him, whether this month or in March, they will be tainted by the way things ended."