However, in terms of the greatest footballer ever the Brazilian legend believes he’s still the No.1.
The 79-year-old, who won three World Cups, said on YouTube channel Pilhado: “Right now I think Cristiano Ronaldo is the most consistent player out there, but you can’t forget about Messi.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
On who is the best ever player, he added: “We mustn’t forget Zico and Ronaldinho. People always talk about European players like [Franz] Beckenbauer and [Johan] Cruyff.
“It’s not my fault, but I think I was better than all of them. There will only be one Pele. There won’t be anyone else like me.”
The money will be donated to a campaign spearheaded by the Medical College of Barcelona and the Angel Soler Daniel Foundation.
Barcelona captain Lionel Messi has also donated €1m, which will be split between the Hospital Clinic in Barcelona and a medical facility in his hometown of Rosario, Argentina.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For analysis of the biggest sport stories - and a concise, balanced take on the week’s news - try The Week magazine.Start your trial today –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
3. Petit: Liverpool ‘more impressive’ than the Arsenal Invincibles
Former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit believes the current Liverpool team is “more impressive” than the Gunners’s “Invincibles” side who went a season unbeaten in 2003-04.
Petit told the Daily Mirror: “It’s amazing what they [Liverpool] are doing - it is rare to see a team winning so many games and being so dominant against their opponents all the time.
“They were both great teams in history, but for me this Liverpool team have something special. It is hard to explain what I feel when I look at Liverpool, but I don’t remember thinking the same way when I was looking at the Invincibles.
“They have impressed me more than Arsenal’s Invincibles. I am pretty sure Arsenal fans won’t be happy with that. But I have to be honest. When I look at this team, the motivation, the intensity, so many talented players. Something is different with them.”
4. Zlatan held talks with Leeds
Leeds United owner Andrea Radrizzani has revealed that the Championship club held talks with Zlatan Ibrahimovic before the Swedish star rejoined AC Milan in January.
Radrizzani told Sky in Italy: “I spoke with Zlatan Ibrahimovic more concretely. He could have given us that decisive push but he decided to go to AC Milan. He has been very honest and transparent with me.”
5. Newton released by the Panthers
NFL’s Carolina Panthers have released star quarterback Cam Newton.
The 30-year-old spent nine years with the Panthers and led them to the Super Bowl in 2015 where they lost to the Denver Broncos. But in recent seasons he has struggled with injuries to his shoulder and foot.
“Cam has meant a lot to this organisation and the Carolinas,” said general manager Marty Hurney. “Everyone saw his performances on the field. I had the privilege of seeing how hard he worked off the field, and his commitment to this team when no one was watching.”
6. Hornets offer facilities to the NHS
Premier League club Watford have offered all of their facilities for exclusive use of West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust (WHHT) during the coronavirus pandemic.
Scott Duxbury, Watford’s chairman and CEO, said: “We need to forget football right now and concentrate on doing all we can to support the NHS and, in particular, Watford General Hospital.
“Our proximity as a football club next door to a hospital puts us in a great position to offer help and we’re keen to do whatever we possibly can to support NHS staff and their families.”
Christine Allen, chief executive of West Herts Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “Right now, we are doing all we can to make sure we can focus on caring for our sickest patients. We have found ourselves needing extra space very quickly.
“For example, we are running refresher training to our clinical staff so that they can care for patients with breathing difficulties. And we also need more space so that we can stick to important guidance about social distancing for our staff induction sessions and for key meetings when we need our senior leadership teams around the table.
“The club’s support is helping us to run our organisation safely and we are very grateful for their support at this challenging time.”
7. Sterling: Liverpool are always in my heart
Despite leaving Liverpool for Manchester City in a controversial transfer in 2015 Raheem Sterling admits that the Anfield club are “always in my heart”.
England striker Sterling spent five years at Anfield and in a live social media Q&A he was asked if he would ever return to the Reds.
On the Colossal Sports Management Instagram account, Sterling said: “Would I ever go back to Liverpool? To be honest with you, I love Liverpool. Don’t get it twisted, they are always in my heart, do you know what I mean? It’s a team that [has] done a lot for me growing up.”
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For analysis of the biggest sport stories - and a concise, balanced take on the week’s news - try The Week magazine.Start your trial today –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
8. Transfer window of opportunity
Daily Mirror reports that the summer football transfer window could “stay open until January”. With football in an historic limbo, and no matches envisaged before May, there is confusion about how the summer transfer market will work.
The Mirror says that if the season does start again in May and go until the start of July that will “cause havoc for the transfer market”. As a result talks are underway between the relevant bodies to reach a solution, and one option is to extend the summer transfer window until January, instead of closing it on 1 September.
A French athlete whose marathon was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic ran the entire 26.2 miles on his 23-foot-long balcony.
Elisha Nochomovitz completed the run in six hours and 48 minutes after performing approximately 3,000 laps of the balcony. His girlfriend fed him M&M’s and Coca-Cola as he ran.
10. Back pages: Time up for Tokyo… for now
“Time runs out for Tokyo” is the headline on the back page of the Independent above a striking photo of the illuminated Olympic rings against the night sky of Japan’s capital.
Not surprisingly the papers all lead with the news that the summer Olympics and Paralympics have been postponed until 2021.
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For analysis of the biggest sport stories - and a concise, balanced take on the week’s news - try The Week magazine.Start your trial today –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Explore More
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The Premier League's spending cap: levelling the playing field?
Is a new English football regulator an own goal for the game?
2023-2024 Premier League predictions: champions, relegation and golden boot
Man City: can ‘one of the best sides in history’ win the treble?
Premier League: Man City vs. Arsenal predictions
Antonio Conte leaves Tottenham after ‘extraordinary’ rant at players
Liverpool 7 Man Utd 0: ‘welcome to Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool 2.0’
Man City’s financial charges: what next for the Premier League champions?
