Lionel Messi hails magical Cristiano Ronaldo

Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi has joined the rest of the world in praising Cristiano Ronaldo for his effort on Tuesday to help Juventus qualify for UEFA Champions League last eight.

After going down 2-0 to Atletico Madrid at Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in the first leg of UEFA Champions League round 16 clash, Simeone side were the favourite to make the last eight but Cristiano’s magical display denied Atleti.

Lionel Messi who alongside Cristiano Ronaldo had and will continue to generate arguments on who is a better player said he was impressed by his rival magical night.

Lionel Messi told Catalunya Radio after helping his side to a 5-1 win against Lyon on Wednesday that he was surprised Juventus made it instead of Atletico.

“What Cristiano and Juventus did on Tuesday was impressive.

“It was a big surprise. I thought Atletico would be a lot stronger, but Juve were
all over them and Cristiano had a magical night.”

Both players could renew their rivalry if Juventus and Real Madrid are drawn together when the quarterfinal fixtures are made on Friday.