MADRID: Brazil great Ronaldo has rated Lionel Messi as the best player in the world at the moment. When asked to name his top five current football players, Ronaldo named Liverpool star Mohammed Salah, Real Madrid's Eden Hazard and Paris St. Germain duo Neymar and Kylian Mbappe apart from Messi.
However, Juventus superstar and Messi's arch-rival Cristiano Ronaldo was a notable omission from his list.
"Messi, of course, he is number one, he is a talent that means it will take 20 or 30 years to see something similar," said Ronaldo in an interview with AS.
"I also like Mohamed Salah, Eden Hazard...Neymar, I love watching him play, and of course, Kylian Mbappe," he said.
Mbappe's performances, particularly at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, have drawn comparisons to Ronaldo but the two-time World Cup winner said that he doesn't believe in such comparisons.
"Many people say that he (Mbappe) looks like me. He has a lot of speed, he finishes well, he has great movement, he shoots really well with both feet, he has an incredible stride," said Ronaldo.
"We have similar attributes, but I never liked the comparisons, especially between players of different generations, because the situations are different," he added.