Messi Named Player of the 21st Century, Surpassing Ronaldo

ESPN has released a special ranking of the best football players of the 21st century, starting from the year 2000.

The network has chosen Lionel Messi as the best player of the century, based on the fact that he has won the most titles with 45 championships with Barcelona, Argentina, Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Miami.

Messi’s eternal rival, Cristiano Ronaldo, came in second place, while the third best player of the current century was the Frenchman Thierry Henry.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was the presence of Kylian Mbappé on the list, despite the fact that his career is still somewhat in its early stages, and he outperformed legends like Ronaldinho and the original Ronaldo.

Here is ESPN’s ranking of the top 10 players of the 21st century:

1. Lionel Messi
2. Cristiano Ronaldo
3. Thierry Henry
4. Zinedine Zidane
5. Luka Modrić
6. Kylian Mbappé
7. Andrés Iniesta
8. Xavi Hernández
9. Ronaldo Nazario
10. Ronaldinho