OPINION: Messi v Ronaldo and the G.O.A.T debate – Who gives a f**k?

The endless Cristiano Ronaldo-Lionel Messi G.O.A.T debate is about the most tiresome on the face of this planet. G.O.A.T, for those who don’t know, is an acronym for Greatest Of All Time, and not a farm animal, though a debate about livestock would be more entertaining.

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Fans of Messi and fans of Ronaldo just love screaming at each other about which of these global footballing superstars is better, and have done for over a decade, but the only rational answer to the question is ‘who gives a f**k?’

Can we not just accept that these are two generational talents, that have mesmerised us with their wonderful array of attacking skills, and that we are blessed to have been able to watch them both?

Shouting about how much better your favourite player is, often while degrading his opponent, has become one of the favourite pastimes of football supporters, especially since social media gave everyone a chance to deliver a constant stream of unnecessary opinions.

In no way is it exclusive to Messi and Ronaldo, of course. Gerrard v Lampard, De Bruyne v Salah, Pele v Maradona, let’s just take these incredible players and reduce the argument to who is better, with zero nuance. In the Messi v Ronaldo debate, however, the argument has reached its loudest volume.

If Messi and Argentina win the World Cup on Sunday, no doubt his supporters will see this as final proof of the PSG man’s incontrovertible superiority over Ronaldo, crowing it from the rooftops in a stream of tweets.

God help us all. Can we not just see Messi’s brilliance for what it is, without needing to constantly compare it to Ronaldo’s, or vice-versa?

Messi has been outstanding in Qatar, from some ice-cool penalties, to a wonderful goal against Mexico, to two truly exceptional assists, against the Netherlands in the quarterfinals and Croatia in the semifinals. If he can lift the World Cup it will be a crowning moment in a career simply swamped in honours and deserved acclaim.

Will it make him officially better than Ronaldo? Once again, for the people in the back, who gives a f**k?