Juventus icon Michel Platini has claimed that Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi should have both upped sticks to the USA or China and saw out the rest of their playing days there.
Ronaldo left Juventus in the summer after a three year stint that has divided opinion when it comes to the 37-year-old's impact in Turin.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner scored a stunning 101 goals in just 137 appearances while donning the famous black and white shirt, but Juventus failed in their ultimate goal of Champions League glory.
Ronaldo was signed from Real Madrid in 2018 so Juventus could take a significant step towards ending their European hoodoo and finally win the Champions League for the first time since 1996.
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However, the Serie A titans did not come close and Ronaldo moved back to Manchester on deadline day last August.
Messi, meanwhile, was forced to leave Barcelona after 21 years on the books due to extraordinary financial mismanagement from those at the top of the club hierarchy.
The Catalan giants fell foul of La Liga wage ruling which meant they were unable to keep hold of the Argentine come the end of his contract.
As a result, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner joined Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer as the Parisians continue their pursuit of building a Champions League winning super-team.
Despite the pair signing for two of the biggest clubs in world football, Platini has suggested they both made a mistake.
"I respect Ronaldo and Messi, but I retired at 32. I could have joined Barcelona or Marseille, but I wanted to be identified with the club that I had made history with," the former striker said.
"Ronaldo was Real Madrid and Messi was Barcelona. If I were them, I would have moved to the USA or China, not to another big club."
Things have not worked out as many would have expected for either, but notably in Messi's case.
The ex-Barcelona forward has bagged just two Ligue 1 goals and has looked a shadow of the player that has been one of, if not the world's best for so long.
Messi's latest low in a PSG shirt came against his former La Liga rivals Real Madrid in the Champions League.
The 34-year-old spurned the chance to put his side in the lead against Los Blancos after he saw his penalty kick saved by Thibaut Courtois.
Ronaldo originally took to life back at Old Trafford seamlessly, but United's fortunes as a collective had fallen some way short of their iconic number seven's ambitions.
The Portugal skipper recently went on his longest goal drought since 2010, going six games without finding the net.
