The two football greats have been the game’s undisputed stars over the last decade, but a fresh concern has been raised with the iconic duo nearing the end of an incredible career
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have been, by all standards, the two best footballers of this generation, but the 35-year-old Portuguese and the 32-year-old Argentine won’t be around forever.
With probably a few more years for the Juventus star and the Barcelona genius at the top, Super Eagles assistant coach Joseph Yobo is worried about what would become of football after the two greats exit the scene.
“A fear that I have is when Messi and Ronaldo leave the stage, what happens to football?” Yobo queried in a chat with Channels TV.
The likes of PSG’s Neymar Jr. and Kylian Mbappe, are widely tipped to step into the gap vacated by the two most frequent winners of the Ballon d’Or.
However, the former Everton defender wants fans to continue to enjoy the brilliance that Messi and Ronaldo exhibit on the pitch while they are both still active.
Yobo also took time to wade into the eternal debate of who is the better player between the two superstars, with the erstwhile Super Eagles skipper preferring Messi to his arch-rival.
“I played against him (Messi) a couple of times and knew that he was one player that could become invisible,” Yobo added.
“We have also to give Ronaldo credit because he built himself to who he is today. I played against him in England. He wasn’t the Ronaldo of today.
“But Messi, people had seen his talent from when he came on board.
“Messi basically is a genius. I don’t know if in football we will see another player like Messi in many years to come. I hope so.”