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Messi is harder to defend against than Ronaldo, claims Thiago Silva

Cristiano Ronaldo
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The Chelsea defender has compared Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of his side’s match against Man United.

Manchester United will face Chelsea in their next league game on Sunday. Ronaldo and co will play their second game under Michael Carrick as they prepare for the arrival of Ralf Rangnick.

Chelsea are leading the Premier League table, enjoying a great run since the start of the season. However, the Blues must nonetheless make sure they control Ronaldo as he has retained his form despite Man United’s struggles.

In a pre-match interview, Thiago Silva has compared Messi and Ronaldo in terms of their approach to dribbling.

“The small difference is that Messi, with the ball in a one-on-one or a two-on-one, is difficult to stop,” the Brazilian explained to ESPN.

“With Ronaldo, I am not saying that it is easy, but one player can mark and the other can monitor – doing that gives you more security at the back.

“However, Messi and Ronaldo are both players capable of incredible things – like Neymar. I believe, though, that it is harder to defend against Messi than it is against Ronaldo.”

Ronaldo scored the first goal for Man United in their 2-0 win over Villarreal on Tuesday. The Red Devils caretaker Carrick praised the Portuguese star for his match-deciding performance.

 “It’s what he does,” Carrick said post-match.

“In the big games, the big moments, when you need a goal or that something, he’s there to deliver.

“He has that cold, calculated mentality to stay calm. He doesn’t snatch at chances.

“I’m delighted to have him and not surprised at all he managed to come up with a goal for us.”

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