Cristiano Ronaldo fans fear one of the greatest footballing eras may be coming to an end with the Manchester United icon unlikely to play club football against long-term rival Lionel Messi ever again, with the Argentinian reportedly set to join MLS franchise Inter Miami.
Regarded as two of the best, if not the greatest, players in history, Ronaldo and Messi have got their hands on 12 Ballon d'Or awards between them throughout their record-breaking careers - in addition to further individual and countless team honours across the leading European divisions.
However, that direct rivalry is seemingly no more after Ronaldo left United for Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Nassr mid-season, before watching Messi rubber-stamp his move Stateside on Wednesday afternoon. He will now team up with the side part-owned by David Beckham.
Speculation over Messi had been at fever pitch throughout the last few months after he guided Argentina to the World Cup trophy in Qatar during the winter. Despite interest from Saudi Arabia and, with that, a possible reunion with Ronaldo, though, the 35-year-old has opted for his own twilight adventure.
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Messi rejected a lucrative offer from Al-Hilal to sign for Inter Miami - who sacked Phil Neville as manager recently - while the MLS agreement includes collaboration from global brands including Adidas and Apple as the seven-time prepares to lace up his boots outside Europe for the first time.
Needless to say, seeing Messi trending on social media has brought Ronaldo fans to the fore. Despite being at the end of their illustrious careers, both superstars continue to have immense followings who each proclaim their hero to be the greatest footballer in history.
Generally, that was the theme on Twitter as that age-old back and forth provided the backdrop to Messi sealing a move, but there are others saddened by the news as they were hoping to see them meet on the pitch, once again. Here are a selection of comments taken from Twitter;
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