Ivan Rakitic feels that while Cristiano Ronaldo is "a great", Lionel Messi is a truly "unique" talent who stands head and shoulders above every other player on the planet.
Ronaldo and Messi have been shortlisted for this year's Ballon d'Or along with Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
Ronaldo
has broken a succession of goalscoring records in helping Real Madrid
win the Champions League, the Club World Cup and the Copa del Rey over
the past 12 months, while Neuer won the double with Bayern Munich before
playing a key role in his country's triumph at Brazil 2014.
Rakitic
is familiar with the brilliance of both men, having faced Madrid many
times in La Liga, as well as playing alongside Neuer during their time
together at Schalke.
However, the Croatia international says that
he has never seen anything like his current Barcelona team-mate Messi,
who he feels is the obvious choice for this year's Ballon d'Or.
"There
is only one player in the world above the rest," he told reporters
after a charity game in Madrid on Tuesday evening. "With all due respect
for Neuer, who is my friend, and to Cristiano Ronaldo, Leo is unique
and should win every trophy.
"I played with Neuer for
three-and-half years at Schalke, while Cristiano is a great, so all
three of them deserve the Ballon d'Or.
"But one player is different from the others, and that is Messi. I think every accolade should go to him."
Messi
led Argentina to the final of this year's World Cup, where they were
beaten by Neuer's Germany, while the diminutive No.10 also became the
leading goalscorer in both the Champions League and La Liga during the
first half of the 2014-15 season.
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