Ronaldinho said on Wednesday that he would retire from football in 2017; before that, however, he evaluates football in general and praised former Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi.
In an interview with Catalan newspaper SPORT, Ronaldinho said that the Argentine is the best of his time, but claims he was the best in his time. Ronaldinho was in New York to promote Barcelona"s move to the United States. The former World Player of the Year also talked about his compatriot Neymar, and thinks the 24-year-old can reach the level of Messi.
Ronaldinho said: “It must be really tough [for Messi]. To keep yourself as the No.1 for as long as Leo has… it"s really difficult. Messi is a phenomenon. Every era has its best player. Each one was the best of their time. And Leo is the best of now. I think Neymar will reach Leo"s level. He"s going to be the best in time. He"s young and he"s won a lot. Like many others, though, he"s unfortunate to be around in the era of Messi. Each player has their time. Garrincha, Maradona… Leo"s up there with them all. I was also the best. Each person has their time. In my era it was me."