Soccer fans often find themselves embroiled in debate over which modern star—Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo—is the GOAT, or “greatest of all time.” For Kaká, a former star midfielder for Brazil as well as AC Milan and Real Madrid during his prime, the answer to that question is one of his countrymen: Ronaldo.
“I had the great opportunity to play with the best players in the world. I’ve played with Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, [Andriy] Shevchenko, [Paolo] Maldini,” Kaká said at a FIFA World Cup trophy tour event in New York on Tuesday. “I’ve played with Cristiano Ronaldo, Marcelo, [Karim] Benzema but the best one for me … is Ronaldo Fenômeno.”
Ronaldo, nicknamed “O Fenômeno” (The Phenomenon) in his native Brazil, is considered one of the other all-time greats, and is especially revered among Brazilians such as Kaká. The two overlapped on Brazil’s national team, for which Ronaldo starred from 1994 to 2011 and Kaká from 2002 to ’16.
