Manchester United should have plenty of motivation heading into this weekend’s clash with Tottenham.
The 5-0 home defeat to Liverpool was a total humiliation and Marcus Rashford spoke of his ’embarrassment’ of being involved in such a defeat.
The one thing Tottenham should not do then, is give United any more ammunition to be fired up.
Spurs defender Cristian Romero may just have dropped his side in it with comments which will rile up Cristiano Ronaldo.
‘Messi is the best’
Cristiano Ronaldo’s rivalry with Lionel Messi has stretched on for more than a decade, with Messi winning six Ballon d’Ors to Ronaldo’s five. The pair battled it out in Spain in El Clasico match-ups which make today’s clashes between the two teams look like a non-event.
Tottenham defender Romero is an international teammate of Messi and in a new interview with Sky Sports.
Romero said: “Playing with Messi is a real joy. I only know him as a player, but he’s a footballing god.
“For me, he’s the best player in the world so it’s always fun being able to play alongside him.”
Those comments are likely to rile Ronaldo, who prides himself on not just being the world’s best, but the best of all time.
When Ronaldo is in the sort of mood he is in to bounce back from his joint-worst defeat of all time, Tottenham’s players probably should not be giving him any extra motivation.
Ronaldo knows Romero from their Serie A clashes last season. Technically the pair were teammates as Romero was contracted to Juventus, but he never played for the club, spending a year on loan at Genoa and then another at Atalanta.
Romero played against Ronaldo last season, a 1-1 draw and a 2-1 win for Juventus, although Ronaldo did not score in either game.
Those goalless games from Ronaldo has probably played a bearing in his decision to rank Messi higher, although their Argentine bond probably made it a foregone conclusion anyway.
Ronaldo did net twice against Romero’s Genoa in two games in the 19/20 season.
Ronaldo will want to show a response to United’s defeat this coming weekend.
He may also be keen to prove a personal point.
It probably wasn’t wise for Romero to drop the Messi praise days before he takes on Ronaldo. If it was a mind-game to wind the United star up, it could majorly backfire.
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