Carlos Tevez has settled the Lionel Messi versus Cristiano Ronaldo debate, drawing on his own experience of playing alongside both to explain the difference he spotted between two of the greatest footballers in history.
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The Argentine was speaking to former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand on the programme "Rio Ferdinand Presents", where he was asked to pick between Messi and Ronaldo and to spell out the biggest differences he saw between them on the pitch and in training.
Tevez chooses Messi: natural talent settles the comparison
He plumped for his compatriot. What marks Messi out, Tevez explained, is his ability to pull off his skills in a natural, instinctive way, unlike Ronaldo, a player known for relentless work and intensive training to sharpen his technical and physical game.
Ronaldo, according to Tevez, drilled constantly on the finest details, from movement with the ball to dribbling. Messi, by contrast, he never saw practise his dribbling the same way. So many of the Argentine's tricks come spontaneously, and that is what tipped the choice in his favour.
Ronaldo excels in headers
On the technical and physical gap between the two, Tevez pointed to how closely matched they were in strength and in hunger to reach the summit. The rivalry between them, he reckons, kept both shining for years on end.
One area stood apart, though. Tevez handed Ronaldo a clear edge in the air, rating him well above Messi when it came to headers, while insisting both saw a huge improvement in the quality and accuracy of their finishing over the years. His words lay bare the difference in their technical make-up, even as both kept finding ways to decide matches.
Tevez's verdict carries real weight. He was a team-mate of Ronaldo at Manchester United between 2007 and 2009, and he played alongside Messi for Argentina, giving him a close-up view of how both stars went about their work in training and in matches. His choice of Messi remains a personal one, shaped by that experience, and it does nothing to end the endless debate over the two legends.