'I hope 2026 is dedicated to Cristiano Ronaldo!' - Ex-France star wants Portugal legend to win World Cup & repeat Lionel Messi feat as Roberto Martinez is given line-up warning

The Albiceleste emerged triumphant in 2022, with eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi adding to his medal collection at the end of an epic final showdown with France that went all the way to penalties. Said success was considered by many to be fate, with one of the best to ever do it finally getting his hands on the most sought-after of honours.

Ronaldo has spent the best part of two decades locked in a battle with Messi for the right to be considered the greatest of all-time. He has captured European Championship and UEFA Nations League crowns, but the grandest prize of all has remained elusive.

He will get another opportunity to right that wrong next summer, at 41 years of age, while some have suggested that he could play on to a home World Cup in 2030. Whatever the case, it would be fitting if CR7 were able to emulate Messi in the trophy-winning stakes.

Leboeuf, who got his hands on the World Cup with France in 1998 and was speaking in association with BetVictor Online Casino, told GOAL when asked about Ronaldo’s recent claims that he does not need a global title in order to cement his legacy: “He’s not lying because what he has achieved is already fantastic, but Ronaldo and Messi - out of all the titles, it was a race between those two for the Ballon d’Or, it became who do you prefer? It became a constant question - are you more Messi or Ronaldo? For more than a decade it was that.

“Those players already achieved big titles, but it’s true that a World Cup makes a difference. I have sometimes criticised Ronaldo for what he has done and I have been hammered by his fans. Some people say: ‘What have you achieved in your life?’ I say: ‘I won the World Cup, he didn’t’. It’s the easy answer!

“Of course he has done better than me, he’s a fantastic player, but winning a World Cup makes a difference - even if you are Frank Leboeuf, but even more so if you are Ronaldo after Messi has won it.

“It was like in 2022 the World Cup was dedicated to Messi. I really hope that 2026 will be dedicated to Cristiano Ronaldo. That would be fantastic for him to get a World Cup, and for Portugal. Portugal have a hell of a team, so it’s possible.”

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Ronaldo was benched at times during Euro 2024, as questions are asked of whether he should be figuring as prominently for his country as he does, and Leboeuf added on the selection headache that an iconic figure continues to pose: “How are you going to handle Cristiano Ronaldo? That will be Roberto Martinez’s main question. At the last tournament, the European Championship, he has been put on the bench. That might be the same issue at the World Cup. To play every three days is complicated.

“I believe that he is going to be fit, going to be good, and Portugal will have a chance to win the World Cup with him on the field. That would be a great achievement for him at 41. But, Roberto Martinez will have to think twice before putting him on the field every game - that’s the main concern that he has. It would be nice to see him win the World Cup.”

Portugal know that they will be facing Uzbekistan and Colombia in the group phase of next summer’s finals, while waiting to discover who will prevail down path one of the inter-confederation play-offs.

Ronaldo is expected to start that tournament as captain of his country, having already reached 226 caps and 143 goals, with excited observers in every corner of the planet ready to discover if he can follow in the footsteps of Messi on the grandest of sporting stages.