Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been constantly compared to satiety, not only for breaking records and setting new standards, but also because they’ve shared the same era, creating arguably the most iconic rivalry in soccer history. However, this race to the top has also led both legends to share several similarities, which have now been highlighted by a former Argentina star who played with both.
Few players have had the chance not only to share the pitch, but also the locker room, with Ronaldo and Messi. Paulo Dybala is among that select group, having played alongside the Portuguese star at Juventus and with the Argentine icon on the Argentina national team, where he noticed key similarities between the two legends.
In an interview with former rugby player Agustín Creevy for his YouTube channel, Dybala, currently at AS Roma, reflected on the experience of playing with both stars: “I played with both of them — incredible. There are similarities between them. I think more mentally than in training.“
In terms of profile, Ronaldo and Messi differ in preferred foot, height, and even position, but their shared mindset has been a game-changer in keeping them at the top. “Technically they’re different, they have different strengths, but they’re two beasts, especially psychologically,” added La Joya.
Paulo Dybala speaking to Cristiano Ronaldo in Juventus, and to Lionel Messi in Argentina.
Ronaldo and his strict routine at Juventus
One major difference in Dybala’s experience with the two icons is that he worked with Ronaldo daily at club level, whereas he only linked up with Messi during international duty. Still, during his time with the Portuguese forward, Dybala witnessed the full Ronaldo routine firsthand.
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Asked about Ronaldo’s mentality and work ethic, Dybala shared detailed insight: “He was extremely professional with his care and routine — he didn’t change a comma. He’d arrive when he was supposed to, at 8 or 9 in the morning, and until he left you’d see him always doing everything: gym, massage, physio therapy, cold bath, sauna, his meals — he never strayed. Not one extra chip, nothing. It’s like the guy had his mind locked in on that, and you could tell he was always the same.“
Ronaldo has spoken in recent interviews about his training habits and mentality, which he still maintains today at Al Nassr. In this case, Dybala provided further detail on how the forward’s routine , consistent for more than a decade, has been crucial to sustaining elite form.
Despite arriving as a younger player in a veteran-laden squad, Dybala explained how Ronaldo led by example. “Players like that — their presence on and off the field… he’d get the ball and aim for goal, he didn’t care about anything. He could lose the ball 100 times and he’d keep going. Same thing in training — you could tell they hate losing at anything. We’d do drills like hitting a cone from far away and he wouldn’t leave until he hit it three times in a row,” he added.
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