The former France star spent five years in LaLiga playing against both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi and believes the difference is clear between both players

2018 World Cup winner Adil Rami has weighed in on the famous debate about who the better player is between Argentine legend Lionel Messi and Portugal icon Cristiano Ronaldo after playing against both in LaLiga.

Rami picks winner in Messi vs Ronaldo debate

Rami spent five years playing consistently against both Messi and Ronaldo in two spells with Valencia and Sevilla in LaLiga and believes that the Argentine World Cup winner was the superior player.

Although Rami noted his admiration for Ronaldo, he was also keen to point out that the Portugal captain was miles off the quality that Messi possessed.

Adil Rami playing against Cristiano Ronaldo | Imago
The former Sevilla star told Tribuna, “I repeat, I like Ronaldo, I like Messi. But you just can’t compare Ronaldo to Messi.

“Against Barca, we came together like an army just to face Messi… and we all went down together.”

World Cup winner explains Messi’s greatness

Rami explained how difficult it was squaring up to the diminutive Argentine, saying, “I watched Iniesta, Busquets, Xavi… they were switching positions, but I didn’t get tired of it.

“Once Messi received the ball… this was the moment I said ‘Starf’Allah’ [praying and seeking forgiveness from Allah]. That’s it. He starts the move, and he accelerates.

“You just have to experience it. When he was starting to get closer with the ball at his feet, we were all panicking together. Adil Rami playing against Messi for Sevilla | Imago
The now-clubless ex-France international noted that it was nearly impossible to stop Messi once he got into his groove and expressed how difficult it was to play against Messi.

Rami said, “One always wanted to be the guy who stole the ball from Messi, but it was impossible. He’s not some guy, he’s not some footballer… every time he received the ball, we tightened up in defence because he was ready to give those good passes between the lines.”

Messi was the MVP as Argentina won the 2022 World Cup | Imago
Rami got one over Messi on the way to winning the 2018 FIFA World Cup as France knocked Argentina out of the competition at the Round of 16 stage.