Often forced to be rivals by their fans, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have always been very respectful of each other. That was made clear once again as the Argentine goes through a very difficult time following the passing of his father, Jorge Messi.
After Messi hinted at retirement in a heartfelt letter to his late father in an Instagram post, Ronaldo joined the comments to send the Argentine ace a sincere message of support. Some things are bigger than soccer, and the two elite competitors proved that once more.
“A huge hug to you and your loved ones during these difficult times, Leo. Stay strong,” Cristiano Ronaldo commented on Lionel Messi’s farewell letter to his father.
Screenshot of Cristiano’s comment on Messi’s post.
Ronaldo took the time to write Messi
Just a day after Cristiano Ronaldo confirmed his marriage to Georgina Rodriguez, as the couple may be enjoying their honeymoon, the Portuguese icon shared kind and heartfelt words for Messi as he goes through a difficult time.
Although the two often competed for silverware—both at the club and personal level—Messi and Ronaldo’s rivalry was fueled by mutual respect and a desire to be better than the other superstar, not by vitriol or bad blood. Thus, their relationship was never rough off the pitch, and the two often shared sincere messages for one another.
Messi’s full letter to his late father
In an emotional post on social media, Messi unveiled his most sincere self. Allowing his true feelings to fly free, the Argentine issued a powerful message for his late father, one that brings tears to the eyes of anyone who reads it.
“Dad, I still can’t believe you’re gone,” Messi’s letter begins. “It hasn’t sunk in, or rather, I don’t want it to sink in. It’s so hard to imagine that I won’t see you anymore, that we won’t talk anymore. I know you were suffering and that this is for the best, but you left too soon. We still had so much left to enjoy together.
“You kept asking me so much to play this last World Cup, and just days before it started was when you got the worst. It was the first time you weren’t going to be at a tournament, but Mom told me you’d get better and be well enough to travel. I told you we were going to make it to the final so you could come.
“Every time a match ended, I waited for and missed your text. That was when I realized how bad things really were. Even so, I couldn’t stop thinking about going as far as possible, just to buy time so you could watch a match. We made it to the final and you couldn’t be there. I wanted to win it to bring it to you and show you a new one. I couldn’t; my legs just had nothing left to give. This time I tried to push through what my body could handle, but I couldn’t. I was never able to feel right.
“When I arrived, you thought we had lost the final on penalties. We couldn’t talk about anything that happened. You couldn’t enjoy any of it. We didn’t end up champions, but you have no idea how much we enjoyed every single match. Once again, you were right: I had to be there and play it.
“I’m telling you this because it was the only thing we didn’t get to talk about, since you already know everything else. We talked every day and saw each other whenever my commitments allowed.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do without you, I don’t know how to keep going. All I did was play football, and now I have serious doubts about continuing to do it for much longer. You were by my side from the beginning; there was so little left until the end. Why couldn’t you hold on just that little bit longer so we could finish together?
“I know your happiness was seeing your family doing well, your wife, your kids, and above all—without the others finding out—watching me play…
“It was always like that since I was little. You’d take me to every single training session the minute you got home from work. Mom took me to plenty because you were working.
“Naturally, you never missed a single match. How you suffered watching me and how you enjoyed it, even though you rarely gave out compliments.
“You were my dad, friend and agent. You were always the person you needed to be in every moment, and you never made a mistake. Despite some reproaches and arguments, you were always right. In the end, everything always turned out the way you said it would.
“I’m going to miss you so much, but you will always be present, especially in my kids’ upbringing, because I raise them and teach them the way Mom and you did with me. Rest in peace, and take care of us up there like you did here. Thank you for everything. I love you, Dad,” Messi concluded.
