Former Manchester United star snubs Cristiano Ronaldo but includes Lionel Messi in his list of top 5 players to watch of all-time
Dutch legend Edwin van der Sar snubbed former Manchester United teammate Cristiano Ronaldo but named Lionel Messi while picking his top five players to watch of all time. The former Manchester United goalkeeper was asked to rank his top five players to watch of all time by GOAL.
Starting with number five, he named former French midfielder Zinedine Zidane. The Dutch legend then picked former teammate Ryan Giggs at the fourth spot and lauded the Welshman for his skills. He said:
"I love Ryan Giggs. The way he touched the ball whenever he caressed the ball, the way he got the crosses in, and then he scored. So, Ryan."
For the third spot, the Ajax chief backed Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, snubbing his former Manchester United teammate Cristiano Ronaldo. However, the Dutchman said that he was not very happy about Messi scoring against him. He added:
"Not really happy that he scored a few goals against me, Lionel Messi"
Argentine legend Diego Maradona found the second position on Edwin van der Sar's list, while Dutch icon Johan Cruyff was number one. The former United custodian gave the interview before the 2025 Soccer Aid by UNICEF, where World XI recorded a 5-4 win over England XI.
When Manchester United attacker Marcus Rashford made his choice between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
English attacker Marcus Rashford was asked to pick between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in 2018 during an interview with CNN. Messi and Ronaldo have dominated the sport for almost two decades, winning numerous individual and team accolades. As a result, choosing one over the other is always a tricky decision.
However, the Manchester United attacker faced no trouble in making his choice. Rashford claimed that he's a huge fan of Ronaldo but picked Messi as the greatest. The English attacker said (via SportBible):
"Some of the stuff that he does is unbelievable. I'm a big fan of (Cristiano) Ronaldo as well, but I think Messi is the greatest ever."
Marcus Rashford, who spent the second half of the 2024-25 season at Aston Villa on loan, shared the dressing room with Ronaldo between 2021 and 2022 at United.
