Former Super Eagles captain John Mikel Obi has explained why he believes Lionel Messi stands above Cristiano Ronaldo in football, saying teams feared the Argentine more than any other player during his time at Chelsea.
Speaking about the long-running Messi-Ronaldo debate, Mikel said some fans prefer Ronaldo because of his physical attributes, but insisted that, based purely on football ability, Messi is in a class of his own.
According to the former Chelsea midfielder, the Blues never built their tactical plans around stopping Ronaldo because they trusted Ashley Cole to handle him, but preparing to face Barcelona was an entirely different challenge.
Mikel said every tactical meeting, training session, and discussion before facing the Spanish club focused on one question: how to stop Messi.
He explained that no single player could effectively mark the Argentine, noting that it often took several players working together to limit his influence, yet Messi would still find ways to dribble past defenders, create chances, score goals, and dictate games.
While praising Ronaldo as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, Mikel argued that football extends beyond goals to include dribbling, creativity, vision, playmaking, assists, and controlling the rhythm of a match.
According to him, Messi has consistently set the benchmark in those areas, adding that comparing any player to the Argentine is unfair.
