Ronaldo's Portugal Career Stood in Stark Contrast to Messi's Farewell

Cristiano Ronaldo's long international career with Portugal ended ugly. This stands in sharp contrast to the career of his great rival Lionel Messi, which closed with a beautiful farewell. Messi also left the national team this year, but only after taking Argentina to two consecutive World Cup finals.

Ronaldo's emotional video message, published on Thursday, was a farewell of sorts, but it came after a bitter dispute with Portugal head coach Jorge Jesus. The Manchester United and Real Madrid legend left the camp to which he had been called up for the latest national squad. He was then fined and suspended. Both penalties were largely symbolic, but the $285 fine in particular cast a shadow over the final chapter of his career. During his time with the team, Ronaldo had led Portugal to three major trophies and had become the all-time leading goalscorer in men's international football.

Messi's importance to Argentina was clear right up to the end. He reached new heights at the World Cup, briefly becoming the tournament's all-time leading scorer, and took his country to the brink of back-to-back titles. At 39, he finished with eight goals and four assists, trailing only Kylian Mbappe in total goal contributions. According to the statistics, it was Messi's best World Cup.

Ronaldo's retirement at 41 looked like a long-anticipated end. He was left out of the 2022 World Cup squad, while Goncalo Ramos, who replaced him, scored a hat trick and signaled the arrival of a new generation. Ronaldo nevertheless kept fighting, broke scoring records and, last year, led Portugal to their second Nations League title. Yet he could not match Messi's brilliance on the biggest stage. After a poor performance at the World Cup in Qatar, he failed to score at the 2024 European Championship, where Portugal reached the quarter-finals. Later in the tournament, after missing a penalty in extra time, he broke down in tears on the pitch.