re: World Cup Quarterfinals: Croatia vs Brazil followed by tNetherlands vs Argentina

Honestly they should have let him go before the season started. He is in his last years and he wants to play. I get that.

I hate what the Ronaldo Messi fans turn it into honesty. Whoever you think is better there is no argument as to who the next on your list is. We can have a different opinion and agree they are 1 and 2 on the list of guys from this era.

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French league runs circles on MLS my baw

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Obviously…I was just making a point.

Agree to disagree on Tgoat

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Ronaldo became even more reliant on good service

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Reliant on good service…who exactly was serving him at Man U last year?

Ronaldo did it for almost a decade in the top league in the world. Messi stayed in Spain with basically 3 teams in it. Then went to France where PSG are miles ahead of everyone else.

I don’t want to hijack this into a Messi Ronaldo debate but I just disagree.

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He leads this Croatian team to a Cup Final: he’s top 3

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Of this particular generation? I don't know if we are going to count Xavi and Pirlo part of his generation, but Andres Iniesta certainly is, and I guess I would rate him as equal to Modric, though he played with more talented teams internationally and Modric is more versatile than he is. Busquets is another perfect midfielder, although he is exclusively a deeper-lying player, and is certainly different from the other players I've mentioned. Nonetheless, it is hard to find 3 to even put in the same conversation as Modric.

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Reliant on good service…who exactly was serving him at Man U last year?

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His goal numbers were depressed, right? That was the first season he had less than 20 goals in league play since his last year at Man U his first go around. Ronaldo had ridiculous service during the Mourinho era, where by god those Madrid teams were among the best counter-attacking teams ever. Then he had a midfield almost as good as prime Barcelona under Ancelotti.

Like I said, both had choices, to get involved in the build-up or just be at the end of it. Messi mostly retained his stats despite having to do the work of 3 players in Barcelona. Messi's time when Barca struggled to replace Xavi should be remarked upon, as he was spectacular then too.

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Ronaldo did it for almost a decade in the top league in the world.

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In the EPL? It certainly wasn't the best league in the noughties.

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Ligue 1 is miles better than MLS. The average technical level of a French player is far ahead of the US. The French basically provide all the players for several African countries.

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Thanks for saving me the time

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name a league better.

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In 2003? Serie A and La Liga

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He went to Man U in 2003 and name a league better.

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La Liga and Serie A were better until Calciopoli in 2006. Those Milan and Juventus teams were amazing. The PL expanded the top teams from Man U and Arsenal, but long ball was still prevalent in the league, while the technical level of the continent was higher. 2003 is a bad year to choose. 2007-2010 the football was better overall than anywhere, although the technical level of Spanish teams is just so high that it has taken a lot for English teams to catch-up.

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You’re telling me Messi didn’t have the same or better service at Barcelona?

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Up until when Xavi left, he had superb service. When he left, his game noticeably changed. He moved from central positions around the 18 to receiving the ball on the inside right channel near the center circle. Like I said, both players had a choice. For Me, Messi’s playmaking abilities are completely overshadowed by his remarkable dribbling and finishing. Put it another way, if Messi didn’t score any goals during those years, he’d still be regarded as the best player in the world just due to his passing abilities.

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Honestly I was 14 in 03.

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I was still a teenager then and until 2003 and fully implemented in 2005, the offside rule favored big, strong, athletic teams. But the change in the rule, which said that if a player was in an offside position at the beginning of a move, he was not offside as long as he wasn’t the target of the pass, was a monumental rule change for possession-based teams. It meant more space in midfield, since the defense still had to track runners who ventured into offside positions, thus making them play deeper. Once gigantic teams gave way to teams dominated by diminutive midfielders. Arsenal’s progression in this respect is a case study in the change, as Wenger dropped his 4-4-2 preference for five man midfields centered around Fabregas rather than Vieria type players. That rule change set the way for the tika-taki style until Bayern fielded a fast, strong, technically adept team that could demolish possession-based teams in 2012-13. In some ways, that makes Ronaldo’s transition from winger to classic center forward more impressive, since he had much less space to run into, while players like Messi had more space to dribble.

Hate how commentator just starts yelling every time Messi touches the ball

Just let things happen naturally baw