For most of the last decade, two names have dominated world football (soccer) more than any other; Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. These great rivals have broken countless football records, scored an insane number of goals and pushed each other to greatness.

Despite the fact that they are two very different footballers, playing two very different styles in two very different roles for two different clubs. The only thing that truly connects the two is the ocean of skill that separates them from the rest of the players in the world.

There is no doubt that the pair still belong to the pantheon of football's all-time greats. While any effort to determine the greatest football player of all time is subject to generational bias, they are not the greatest in history, here's why.

Despite his unparalleled achievement on and off the field of play, Cristiano Ronaldo is still not considered the best Ronaldo to have ever played the game. Ronaldo de Assis (also known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho) and Ronaldo de Lima (the phenomenon) are the other 'Ronaldos' whose legendary attacking prowess is often compared to that of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ronaldo de Lima was a more explosive and complete striker who would probably have been the 'Best Striker in the World' if he had remained injury-free throughout his football career, whilst Ronaldinho was the artist who, in his prime, constantly impressed the football world.

Cristiano Ronaldo is better than other 'Ronaldos' in terms of electorate over the years, phenomenal goal rates.

It is a well-known fact that for a football player to be the best in the world, he must be the best football player in his country and unfortunately, Lionel Messi is not both. Lionel Messi is not the best football player Argentina has produced.

That honor goes to Diego Armando Maradona. Maradona (widely considered one of the best football players of all time) is a football legend who inspired Argentina to a World Cup victory and SSC Napoli (in the Italian Football League) to their first and second League titles [Scudetti] in his story.

He is the scorer of the most dubious goal in the world (the 'Hand of God' goal) and FIFA's Goal of the Century. There is practically a cult of the player in Argentina. Diego Maradona (and Pelé) is the benchmark for the illustrious South American nation when a new star arrives on the block.

So, while Messi has dazzled on the European stage, surpassing milestone after milestone and winning many awards, his compatriots consider him the country's second best football player of all time.

Although the later rounds of the current UEFA Champions League rival the FIFA World Cup in terms of quality, with talent from around the world increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few, the World Cup still retains substantial symbolic value as a quadrennial competition that pits the best of one nation against the best of another.

It's no secret that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have never won (or inspired their respective countries to win) the FIFA World Cup. Cristiano Ronaldo has won a European Cup (the Euro) with his home country of Portugal, but has never been to the World Cup semi-finals or finals.

While Lionel Messi was disappointing in the 2014 World Cup semi-final and final with his native Argentina, they ended up losing to Germany. The world (and Messi) was shocked when he was named the best player and awarded the tournament's Ballon d'Or.

Lionel Messi is also a three-time Copa América runner-up with Argentina. Most football players, such as Zinedine Zidane, Pelé, Diego Maradona, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo de Lima, etc., often named as the best football player of all time.

They all played dominant roles in the World Cup that they ended up winning. The same cannot currently be said of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The best football player of all time played dominant roles in the World Cup that they ended up winning.

The same cannot currently be said of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The best football player of all time played dominant roles in the World Cup that they ended up winning. The same cannot currently be said of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are efficient, effective and phenomenal scorers with incredible goals per game ratios, but they are not among the top five scorers in the history of football. Neither of them scored more than 700 goals in their respective careers, which is why they cannot be in the company of great players like;

The scoring rate of these legendary players is more impressive than that of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, as they ended their football careers with goal scores in the 800s.

So if scoring goals is what makes football players great, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo having better players with better goals in front of them.

The search for the greatest football player in history is historic and controversial. All football players (sportsmen) are products of their time.

Because of the stagnation of football's development relative to other sports and because there are so many different positions and so many roles within those positions, it's difficult to have a worthwhile conversation about who is the best football player of all time.

As the main objective of the game is to score a goal, top scorers like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will always be at the top of any list about the best players in the game.

Conclusion; Don't be fooled that there won't be another player like Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, no one thought there would be another player like Diego Maradona and the greatest of all Edson Arantes do Nascimento – Pelé.