Gerard Pique explains why Lionel Messi is greater than Cristiano Ronaldo

Gerard Pique, a former teammate of Lionel Messi at Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo at Manchester United has offered an interesting insight into Messi's mindset during his Ballon d'Or-winning rivalry with Ronaldo.

Despite the intense competition between the two footballing legends, Pique insists that Messi was never "obsessed" with Ronaldo's achievements.

Messi, who has clinched the prestigious Ballon d'Or award eight times compared to Ronaldo's five, remained focused on his own game rather than fixating on his rival's success.

Pique told talkSPORT:

“He wasn’t that type of guy. He was very team-focused, although he was getting all the first page in all the newspapers and radios and TV.“

"He was very close with all of us and he was just focused on winning titles like the Champions League and these kinds of things because he was the best."

"Then he was winning the Ballon d’Or but it wasn’t something that was a priority for him.”

Lionel Messi led Argentina to the Copa America triumph this summer and has returned to help Inter Miami achieve success in the MLS.