Marco Materazzi has revealed who he thinks is the greatest footballer he's ever seen and he didn't pick Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. To the majority of football fans, pundits and ex-players, the duo are considered the very best the sport has ever had to offer. Opinion is generally split on which of them is ultimately the greatest player of all time, but more often than not, it's one of the duo being named the all-time greatest.
That isn't the case for Materazzi, though, who went with someone else entirely. The former defender was a controversial figure on the football pitch, most famously remembered for being on the receiving end of a Zinedine Zidane headbutt during the Frenchman's final ever game. As a result, it can be easy to forget about how good the Italian actually was. He spent a decade playing for Inter Milan and was teammates with some of the best footballers on the planet during that time.
greatest players-1 Related
35 Greatest Football Players Of All Time (2025)
The 35 greatest footballers of all time have been named but who comes out on top; Messi, Ronaldo or Maradona?
In fact, it was actually one of his former Inter comrades that Materazzi named as the greatest footballer he'd ever seen and he even claimed he was like Messi and Ronaldo combined.
They played together at Inter Milan
Ronaldo
Ronaldo Nazario was an electric striker in his prime and there were few quite on his level throughout his career. According to Materazzi as well, he was the best player he'd ever seen. During an interview with Rio Ferdinand, the former defender spoke highly of his former teammate and claimed he was like Messi and Ronaldo combined. Speaking to the Englishman, he said:
"For me, R9 (Ronaldo) is the best. The best. He was Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo combined. We played together at Inter Milan for one year."
Check out footage of the moment during the interview at the 17:00 mark in the video below:
It's a bold claim from Materazzi, but he got to witness Ronaldo's greatness up close during their brief time together in Italy. The Brazilian was explosive and he was unlike anyone else in front of goal during in prime. Injuries slowed him down towards the end of his career, but that doesn't take away from the incredible heights that he reached earlier on in his time on the pitch. For the likes of Inter Milan, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Brazil, he was a force to be reckoned with and was undoubtedly one of the best players in the world.
His time teaming with Materazzi was brief, though. Having moved to the San Siro in 1997, Ronaldo spent five years with Inter, scoring 59 times in 99 appearances. Things started strongly, but injuries held him back in his final three seasons before he left in 2002. One year before he departed, though, Materazzi joined the club and while he didn't get to see Ronaldo play all too often during that lone season alongside one another, it was more than enough evidence for the Italian to label him the greatest player he'd ever seen. Impressive.
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt and accurate as of 21/03/2025