Cristiano Ronaldo Named His ‘Greatest Player in Football History’

Former Manchester United and Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo is widely regarded as one of the greatest – if not the greatest – players in the history of football. The Portuguese forward has been at the top of the game for two decades, and his impressive resume truly speaks for itself.

Five Champions League titles, three Premier League wins, five Ballon d’Ors and a host of other individual and team accolades – the iconic CR7 has won it all during his stellar professional career, which firmly places him in the conversation for the best footballer to ever grace the beautiful game.

A resilient winner on the pitch, Ronaldo always had his favourites off it as well, and once gave his take on who he believes is the best player in football history.

The ex-Juventus forward snubbed all of his former teammates – and even his arch-rival Lionel Messi – and picked a World Cup winner whose status as one of the greats is rarely contested.

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Cristiano Ronaldo Praises Pele

Ronaldo once named Brazil icon Pele as ‘the greatest player in football history’ and claimed that no one will ever be able to emulate the three-time World Cup winner:

“Pele is the greatest player in football history, and there will only be one Pele in the world.”

Pele is widely regarded as one of the most iconic and successful football players in history – not only for his incredible talent, but also for how he transformed the global perception of the sport.

The Brazilian icon rose from poverty to become one of football’s first true superstars and led Selecao to a World Cup triumph in 1958 at just 17 years old.

He became the youngest player to score in a final, netting twice against Sweden, and no other player has managed to match that remarkable achievement to this day.

Pele would go on to lift the prestigious Jules Rimet trophy twice more – in 1962 and 1970 – and still remains the only player in history to win three World Cups.

Pele spent most of his club career with Brazilian side Santos, where he played for nearly 20 years and netted an incredible 643 goals.

After retiring from the professional game in 1977, he became a global ambassador for football and worked closely with various organisations to promote the sport worldwide.

Pele passed away at the age of 82 in December 2022 at the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo, following a battle with cancer.

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Statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt. Correct as of 28-05-25.

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