The Club World Cup is well underway, and while one icon is making headlines on the pitch, the other is noticeably absent.
Cristiano Ronaldo is missing from this year’s tournament, but Lionel Messi is very much present.
On Thursday night, the Argentinian made sure everyone remembered why he still draws crowds around the world. With a trademark free kick, Lionel Messi scored the second goal in Inter Miami’s 2-1 win over FC Porto.
The stadium erupted. The fans chanted. It felt familiar, like the Champions League nights of old, only now in a different part of the world.
After the match, Messi was asked about his long-time rival. The two have dominated football debates for over 15 years. But off the pitch? Things have always stayed quieter.
This time, Messi did not avoid the question. He responded with calm honesty (via Foot Mercato):
“The competition between us took place on the pitch and each of us tried to give the best of ourselves for our team, at every moment and in every place we were. But of course, all of that remains, as always, on the pitch. Then we return to being two normal people. We are not friends, of course, because we don’t spend time together. But what we share is always done in a framework of great respect. I have immense admiration for what he has achieved in his career, and for what he continues to do, because he is still playing at the highest level. There is nothing strange about that: it is normal, and that is how things should always be.”
It was a rare moment of openness.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo may never be close off the pitch. But what they gave to football fans over the past two decades? That will always be shared. And respected.
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