Zlatan Ibrahimovic: Ronaldo the greatest of all time

Lionel Messi won a record seventh Ballon d’Or award this week, taking him two clear of great rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

The prestigious individual award resumed after taking a year out due to COVID-19.

The ‘Ronaldo or Messi’ debate is something that will continue to divide supporters across the world.

But evergreen AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic feels that neither the current Manchester United or Paris Saint-Germain superstars are the greatest of all time.

When asked to name who he thinks is the GOAT, the Swedish legend told Corriere della Sera: “Ronaldo the Phenomenon. As a child I imitated him.”

Ronaldo is a legend of the game.

The Brazilian Ronaldo scored 352 times in a club career which saw him represent the likes of PSV Eindhoven, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Barcelona and AC Milan.

With his country, the two-time Ballon d’Or winner scored 62 goals and won two World Cups

Ibrahimovic, who is still going strong at Milan aged 40, also feels that Messi didn’t deserve to win the ‘Golden Ball’ this year.

He said: “Leo lives for football. But Lewandowski deserved the Ballon d’Or this year.”

Bayern Munich striker Lewandowski scored 61 goals for club and country in 51 matches in 2021 leading up to the award, while Messi scored 41 in 56.