Samir Nasri was never one for being backwards when it came to coming forward with a strong opinion. This is a man who, after one Arsenal defeat, stood up to tell the whole dressing room that the loss was due to teammate Emmanuel Frimpong. So it is no surprise to see Nasri and his ex-Gunners colleague listed among the 10 sets of teammates that openly disliked each other.
Nasri had strong beliefs on the debate about Ronaldo being the greatest, too. As far as Nasri was concerned, Ronaldo was better than Lionel Messi. There was no doubt in the Frenchman's mind about that. However, Nasri was not actually talking about Cristiano Ronaldo.
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Samir Nasri
As far as Nasri is concerned, the Brazilian Ronaldo was in a different league to Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. Famously, Ronaldo Nazario, sometimes known as R9, or simply Ronaldo, won the 2002 World Cup with Brazil. Having overcome serious knee injuries, he top-scored in the tournament, including two goals in the final against Germany.
One of R9's teammates in that World Cup was Ronaldinho. Frenchman Nasri was a big fan of both:
"For me, they extinguish Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. There are coaches who have worked and have seen all these players before their eyes. They said, ‘I’ve never seen Ronaldo the Brazilian what he could do. And I’ve never seen anyone else do it.'”
Nasri played against Cristiano Ronaldo on four occasions for Arsenal. They all came in the 2008/09 season. This included the Champions League semi-final. In the second leg, Ronaldo scored twice as Manchester United made their way to the final. There, they would lose to Messi's Barcelona.
Nasri has previously weighed in on the debate of Messi versus Cristiano Ronaldo. When previously asked who was better between the two, Nasri said Messi. That said, he did recognise the professionalism and dedication of Ronaldo. As well as being an example for young players to follow.
Nasri is a Big fan of Ronaldo and Ronaldinho
Both Brazilians had pure talent
Ronaldo and Ronaldinho
Many would lean towards Nasri's thoughts on the quality of Ronaldo and Ronaldinho. Not only did they both win the World Cup with Brazil, but they also thrilled fans of their clubs. Ronaldo was a sensation when he broke onto the scene in Europe with PSV Eindhoven and Barcelona.
Ronaldinho later played at Camp Nou too. His form there for a few seasons between 2003 and 2005 was nothing short of sensational. He was once given a round of applause at the Bernabeu for his performance that tore Real Madrid apart. In his prime, he was one of the best dribblers of the ball in football history. Perhaps these two did not play for as long as Messi and Cristiano, but when they did, they were a source of unbridled joy for fans.
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