Cristiano Ronaldo rejects claims he has vile nickname for Lionel Messi

A new book suggested the Real Madrid player referred to his great rival with an offensive term

Simon Rice
Wednesday 12 November 2014 07:12 EST
Comments
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi (GETTY IMAGES)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Cristiano Ronaldo has angrily rejected claims that he uses a vile nickname for his great rival Lionel Messi and has said his lawyers will take action against the perpetrators of the reports.

A new book by Spanish journalist Guillem Balague claimed that the Real Madrid forward referred to the Barcelona player as 'motherf*****'. It was also suggested that he used the term for anyone who spoke to Messi.

Balague goes on to claim that his Real Madrid team-mates compare Messi to a "dog" and a "puppet".

Ronaldo has since taken to Facebook to deny the allegations and insists he has nothing but respect for Messi.

"News is circulating that I allegedly made offending remarks regarding Lionel Messi," wrote the 29-year-old.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi (GETTY IMAGES)

He continued: "This is absolutely false and I have assured my lawyer takes action to sue those responsible. I have the utmost respect for all my professional colleagues, and Messi is obviously no exception."

For the past few years, Ronaldo and Messi have been involved in a dual to be recognised as the greatest player on the planet. Messi was crowned winner of the Ballon d'Or for four years in a row until Ronaldo wrestled it back for his second in January. With a stunning 18 goals in 10 La Liga games so far this term, Ronaldo is the strong favourite to retain the trophy.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in