CELEBRITY
‘NO CONTROVERSY, MESSI IS BETTER THAN RONALDO, SAYS DAVID BECKHAM
Former Manchester player and legend, David Beckham has weighed in on the Lionel Messi versus Cristiano Ronaldo debate – and, according to British Daily Mail, believes that the Barcelona talisman is the greatest player in the world.
Beckham insists that both superstars are a level above the rest of the sport, but views Messi as also being in a class of his own.
Beckham, who came up against Messi during his brief stint at Paris Saint-Germain, insists it is ‘impossible’ that any player comes close to matching the diminutive Argentine’s talent.
The former Real Madrid star, now the president at Inter Miami, enjoyed a trophy-laden career of his own – having won the Premier League, Champions League and La Liga among a host of others.
But both Messi and Ronaldo have been leading at the forefront for over a decade in Europe, and hold a sensational 11 Ballon d’Ors between them.
Beckham was even rumoured to have approach Messi with a view to a sensational switch for his newly-founded MLS team.
The Times reported that the former England captain was hopeful of securing a number of elite players to his club, with Messi seen as the ultimate statement.
The report stated that there is a belief that a MLS swoop for Messi may be viable in two years’ time, with Inter Miami a potential destination.
Despite the latter’s stellar form across his spells at United, Real and Juventus, Beckham shared his belief that Messi stands at the pinnacle of the game.
‘He [Messi] is alone in his class as a player, it is impossible that there is another like him,’ Beckham told Argentine publication Telam.
‘He, like Cristiano Ronaldo, who is not at his level, are both above the rest.’
And having spoken highly about the 32-year-old Messi, Beckham also recalled his encounter on the field against the wing wizard in the 2013 Champions League.
PSG and Barcelona clashed at the quarter-final stage, with the Parisians knocked out of the competition on away goals.
The 44-year-old added: ‘We were leading before Messi came in, and once he came in, Barcelona scored.
‘Although I enjoyed playing at that level at my age, I do not like to lose. Our team played well. In both matches, we did things we should be proud of.
‘We didn’t lose against Barcelona, and that is something that should motivate us.’
Despite the crushing European disappointment, Beckham rounded off his glittering playing days with a Ligue 1 winners’ medal at the end of the campaign.
Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first footballer to reach billionaire status, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which has valued the Portugal great’s net worth at an estimated $1.4 billion.
The 40-year-old striker’s financial ascent comes after he signed a new contract with Saudi side Al-Nassr in June reportedly worth more than $400 million.
Bloomberg said that Ronaldo earned more than $550 million in salary between 2002 and 2023, supplemented by a decade-long Nike deal worth nearly $18 million annually, and lucrative endorsements with Armani, Castrol and others that added more than $175 million to his fortune.
Ronaldo’s move to Al-Nassr from Manchester United in 2023 had already made him the highest-paid player in football history, with an annual salary of 177 million pounds ($237.52 million), plus bonuses and a reported 15% share in his Saudi Arabia club.
Argentina and Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi has earned more than $600 million in pre-tax salary during his career.
Ronaldo’s billionaire status places him among a rare group of athletes that includes basketball greats Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and LeBron James, golfer Tiger Woods and tennis player Roger Federer.
Ronaldo suggested he is not considering retirement any time soon.
“I still have a passion for this,” he said at the Portugal Football Globes gala on Tuesday. “My family says it’s time to quit and they ask me why I want to score 1000 goals if I’ve already scored 900-something. But I don’t think that way inside.
“I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team. Why not continue? I am sure that when I finish I will leave full because I gave everything of myself. I know I don’t have many years left to play, but the few I have left, I have to enjoy them to the fullest.”
-Reuters
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Former England soccer captain David Beckham and actor Gary Oldman were knighted in King Charles’ annual birthday honours list on Saturday, while sculptor Antony Gormley was made a Companion of Honour.
Beckham, 50, joined Manchester United as a trainee in 1993, going on to make almost 400 appearances for the club where he won a string of titles and cups.
He subsequently played for Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, and Inter Milan, as well as captaining his country 58 times and making 115 appearances.
His marriage to fashion designer and former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham in 1999 cemented a celebrity status which went far beyond his sporting exploits.
Oldman, 67, started his career on the stage, where he was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, before rising to prominence in film. He won the best actor Oscar for playing Winston Churchill in the 2017 drama “Darkest Hour”.
He also had roles in the “Dark Knight Trilogy” and the “Harry Potter” movie series and more recently starred in the TV spy drama “Slow Horses”.
Other famous names receiving honours included damehoods for musical theatre star Elaine Paige, novelist Pat Barker and ceramics maker Emma Bridgewater.
Roger Daltrey, lead singer of rock band the Who and a patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust, received a knighthood for services to charity.
More than 1,200 people received honours for their achievements, with a particular focus on those who had given their time to public service, the government said.
King Charles’ official birthday will be celebrated with the annual “Trooping the Colour” military parade in London on Saturday. His actual birthday is on November 14
-Reuters
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One of three judges in Diego Maradona’s closely scrutinized homicide trial in Argentina resigned on Tuesday amid a scandal triggered by the alleged filming of an unauthorised documentary, bringing uncertainty to the future of legal proceedings.
The high-profile trial over the death of soccer star Maradona began on March 11 in the South American country where the World Cup winner is still revered.
-Reuters
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