Capello prefers 'genius' Messi to Ronaldo

Real Madrid's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo may have collected his third FIFA Ballon d’Or and is in the running for this year’s Laureus Sportsman of the Year award but Italy’s veteran coach Fabio Capello has no doubt who is the best player to watch on the pitch.

“He is a genius,” Capello said of the Portuguese’s on-pitch nemesis and Barcelona’s star striker Lionel Messi without even reflecting for a second. With that statement, the Russian coach may have inadvertently joined the unending debate over who is the best player on the planet — Ronaldo or Messi?

“They are both the best players now at the moment,” Capello, who coaches the Russian national side, said in Shanghai yesterday.

“But I think Messi is a genius,” the Italian clearly enamored by the Argentine’s sublime ball skills. “Ronaldo is a competitive player, an extraordinary player but Messi can do something that you cannot think ... his imagination, his technique with the ball... After Pele and Maradona, it is Messi.”

Capello, one of the most successful football coaches in the world, praised Ronaldo for his hard work.

“He has scored a lot of goals. He has won the Golden Boot three times and plays for a fantastic team.

“He always wants to do better. There is determination to work hard every day. That for me is very important. If you have got the talent, you need to work on it every day.

Important lesson

“I remember him when he started with Manchester United. He trains every day. You need to work hard to get better. That is a very important lesson.”

The Portuguese holds a slight edge this season with 36 goals in all competitions to his Argentine rival’s 33. But while Ronaldo has 10 goals from penalties Messi has scored just twice from the spot this season.

While refusing to take sides on the FIFA elections, Capello said current world football boss Sepp Blatter did do something good “by taking football everywhere, but there was scandal”.

“It is good for new people to become president. If Blatter gets another term they can push him to do something good. Competition is very important to improve.”

Capello said China and the United States were the two countries to watch out for in the future.

“The US is doing a lot to improve while China has been bringing experienced foreign coaches here,” the Italian said. “For a country of 1 billion people or more, it can deliver in the future if you can do something very important with the academy.”

As a manager, Capello won four Serie A titles with AC Milan, including the 1993–94 UEFA Champions League after defeating Barcelona 4–0 in a memorable final. He then spent a year at Real Madrid, where he won the La Liga title in his first attempt. In 2001, Capello led AS Roma to its first Serie A title in 18 years. He won two titles at Juventus and in 2006 returned to Real, where he won another La Liga title. He took over as England coach in 2007 and became the Russian manager in July 2012.

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