Messi and Ronaldo are the best players in the world

Former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp hailed Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as extraordinary and expressed his amazement at their enduring brilliance during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

in a talk with tribal football, The German tactician praised Messi’s tactical genius and scoring record, while applauding the 41-year-old Ronaldo’s relentless intensity and strong comeback mentality after facing criticism at the start of the tournament.

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“As a mere spectator, naturally I am a little captivated by them because they are the best players of the last ten, fifteen years.

“But what was great to see was this: after the first match, in which Cristiano Ronaldo was very criticized (even I noticed it), and then counterattacked like this, and at 41 years old with an extremely lively and intense performance, I felt very satisfied.

“The fact that at his age he still gets so upset when something doesn’t work is extraordinary, and his reaction is even more impressive.”

“It’s extraordinary that we get to experience this generation. It’s special. And when we saw each other briefly on the bench and Messi kindly included us in the line of supporters, even when he was 59, I realized how special something like that can be.

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“Because it was special. I was just as happy to see my former player Alexis Mac Allister and have a quick chat with him. But then Messi showed up. And that’s something completely different.”

Messi now has 18 total World Cup goals in his illustrious career, while Ronaldo has 10 as Argentina and Portugal advance to the next round.