Lionel Messi Claims El Clasico Is Not As “Special” Without Cristiano Ronaldo

In an interview with DAZN, Lionel Messi spoke about the ‘special’ nature of his rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo, and how El Clasico is just not the same without the Portuguese superstar around.

“It was a special duel and it will remain [in people’s minds] forever, because it lasted for many years and it is not easy to maintain such levels for a long time,” Messi said.

”Plus, the teams we played in were also very demanding, both Real Madrid and Barca, the two best teams in the world.

”Competing on an equal footing for so many years, I think it will remain [in people’s minds] forever.

It’s hard to argue with Leo here. What Ronaldo and Messi fought through against each other will go down in history as one of, if not the most special time, to be a football fan, ever. It was the two greatest players of all time going at it for years — in a manner that we may never see happen again.

“The sporting duel between us was very nice on a personal level and I think people had fun too, whether they were fans of Madrid or Barca, or even only football fans in general.

”Obviously, when Cristiano was at Real Madrid, the matches were always special.

”The matches against Real always mean a lot, but when Cristiano was there they became much more special.

”But it’s a time that has passed now, that we have experienced. Now, we have to look ahead to the future.”