Defining an era of dominance: Why FC Barcelona need Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho

Now, before you Culés out there find creative ways to fill the comment box with expletives directed at me, I would really appreciate it if you read the article first. Whether we, as fans of the Blaugrana, like to admit it or not, Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho are important for the world to truly appreciate the Catalan side.

Before you Madristas (for a blog dedicated to Barca, there are quite a few Madrid fans who frequent our site) decide to find creative ways to express your hatred towards me and other Cules in general, rest assured this is not just a piece about how great the Catalans are. I really hope that you approach this piece with an open mind.

Although the following is extremely hard for me to say, let alone write (on a Barca blog, no less), we must admit that there really is something special about Ronaldo and Mourinho (unfortunately, something they will never let anybody forget).

To state that the Real Madrid forward is a great player is to state the obvious but it isn’t just that, he really is a marvelous player. Cristiano, in addition to his ‘wealth and good looks’, performs at an unbelievable level for Los Blancos, and has an uncanny ability to maintain his outrageous from, despite the lack of similar as talented teammates. However, in the end football is a team sport, but to watch one player truly lead his team to victories week after week, is nothing short of spectacular. Apart from his blatant arrogance and ambition (sometimes a virtue, sometimes not) to be the world’s best, Ronaldo must be judged purely by his athletic abilities. After all, that is the only aspect of his being that matters to any of us (nobody really cares what he has to say about German Internationals he’s never heard of, incompetent referees or Barack Obama’s presidency) and for him to give football fans (minus Cules) the opportunity to watch him sprint down the wings (with a generous inclusion of, sometimes unnecessary, stepovers) and score week in and week out, can only be seen as a blessing. The Portuguese international has earned his place alongside contemporary greats, whether we (Cules) like to admit it or not.

Unlike Lionel Messi, Ronaldo does not have the support of Xavi or Andres Iniesta and although, Mesut Ozil and Angel Di Maria are great players, they more often than not disappear on the big occasions (not unlike CR7 himself), which makes Ronaldo’s performances for the all whites that much more impressive. Now that I’m done praising Ronaldo and before Sebastian (our tyrannical but well-meaning Editor-in-Chief) decides to ban me from the site for defecting, allow me to say that Lionel Messi is the best player in the world, period (in my opinion and the majority of the football watching world would agree).

But there is a reason why Messi is being talked about in the same breath as Pele and Maradona, his performances in a Blaugrana shirt warrant comparisons to the greatest players ever, because he is the first to live up to the hype. Whereas others disappeared or crumbled under the tag of being the next Pele or Maradona (Robinho, Saviola, Riquelme etc), La Pulga eradicated any doubt that he’s truly one of a kind. At the tender age of 23 he has won everything on club level, scooped every individual award available and did both several times. Granted, Messi is part of the arguably greatest team in the sports history, but, he is the standout performer in a team of world-beaters. Take the Chicago Bulls in their heyday. They had Pippen, Rodman, Kerr etc. but Michael Jordan was the undisputed King, the best among the best. One only has to look at the inflated transfer market to arrive at the conclusion that everybody (and I really mean everybody), is claiming so and so player is the next Pele or the next Maradona. Players like Javier Pastore, Alexis Sanchez, Angel Di Maria and Sergio Aguero are extremely talented, but let’s be honest, one look at these players and we know there is a ceiling to their individual potential. Lionel Messi however, appears not to have one. In La Pulga, the world found a phenomenon that surpassed everyones expectations. But a small part of the reason for that is because Messi has a worthy adversary in Cristiano Ronaldo, one who can truly compete with him. Cristiano Ronaldo is to Lionel Messi, what Joe Frazier was to Mohammad Ali (since I’m writing the article, I really don’t care what you have to say on the matter but as far as I’m concerned Ali was the greatest of ALL TIME) and every one of you has to admit, Ali simply wouldn’t have been that great without Frazier (remember the ‘thriller in manila’?).