for the Barcelona man in a new book, but has moved quickly to rubbish
the allegations
Cristiano Ronaldohas firmly denied calling Barcelona Lionel
Messiseveral offensive names inside the Real Madrid dressing room.
In a new book by Spanish football expert Guillem Balague, it is
claimed Ronaldo has a cold and distant relationship with Messi and
often refers to him in the most unflattering language.
However, after learning of the news on Tuesday, the Madrid star moved
to quickly reject the story out of hand and insists he would never
treat a fellow professional with such disrespect.
Writing on his official Facebook page, he said: "News is circulating
that I allegedly made offending remarks regarding Lionel Messi.
"This is absolutely false and I have assured my lawyer takes action to
sue those responsible. I have the utmost respect for all my
professional colleagues, and Messi is obviously no exception."
The book also suggests that the 29-year-old's Madrid team-mates
jokingly compare Messi to a dog or puppet kept in one of Ronaldo's
designer bags.
The two players have emerged as the outstanding footballers of their
generation in recent years and have won the Ballon d'Or - given to the
world's best player over the previous 12 months - six times between
them.
However, despite the respectful manner in which the pair often greet
and talk about one another in public, rumours have persisted that they
are far from friends, as a result of their personal and club rivalry.
Last month it was the Portugal star who came out on top as Madrid
defeated Barcelona 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu in the first Clasico
of the season.
But Messi then struck back by beating his rival to Raul's record of 71
Champions League goals after scoring twice in the 2-0 victory over
Ajax.
Ronaldo is widely expected to retain his crown as the world's best
player and win a third Ballon d'Or in January, moving him to within
one of the Argentine's tally of four.
--Goal.com
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