Lionel Messi Responds To Cristiano Ronaldo’s Serie A Challenge

Cristiano Ronaldo has certainly been enjoying life with Juventus, his most recent antic sustaining the side’s domestic unbeaten streak and bringing his goal tally to 12.

However, what fans have been missing is the brilliant rivalry between Ronaldo and Messi – the saga that dominated world football for several years and single-handedly provided the La Liga with a must-watch stature.

But since the summer, things haven’t been the same. This was noticed by Ronaldo, who recently issued an open challenge to Messi to join the Serie A.

In it, the Portuguese superstar argued that he has proven himself at the top level in the Premier League, La Liga, and now even the Serie A, while Messi has remained content at Barcelona. Now, the Argentine forward has responded to his nemesis.

Speaking to Marca, Messi stated: “Accepting Ronaldo’s challenge to join Italian football? I don’t need any change. I’m at the best team in the world. My challenges are renewed year after year. I do not need to change teams or leagues to set new goals. I am at home and I do not need to change.”

Potent words from Messi, but one does wonder how applicable they may be. Barca’s stance in recent years has shared with the monotonous nature of the La Liga, which has fallen behind in its ability to entertain when compared to the successful Premier League.

However, this comment seems to indicate that he will end his career with the Catalan giants, displaying a stern loyalty to his boyhood club.

Messi also added about his rivalry with Ronaldo, even commenting on this season’s Ballon d’Or race, their shared deadlock on the top prize being broken by Luka Modric:

“The rivalry with Cristiano was very healthy and good for the fans. I heard the nominees for the Ballon d’Or and I knew I wasn’t in the fight. I love football, but family is above all.”