What Real Madrid Fans Really Think of Barcelona Star Lionel Messi

Barcelona and Real Madrid are well-known for being huge rivals, both in Spanish domestic football and on the European stage for the biggest trophies, and that rivalry between the sides has often spilled over to the terraces in unsavoury fashion.

From deriding players who cross the divide from one team to the other to belittling the opposition fanbase, the backing track to El Clasico can be a ferocious tirade of abuse from Los Blancos fans to Barca stars and vice versa.

But where to draw the line between obvious support of your own team—and thus natural, acceptable berating of the opposition—and respecting the talent on show, if not liking it, in the rival lineup?

To find out just how fans manage that argument, if at all, we first asked Barcelona fans what they truly thought of Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo; now the roles are reversed and it's Real Madrid's supporters' turn to give their views on Lionel Messi.

Balance

While the fans' viewpoints are the entire basis for our investigation, supporters do come in all types: the casual, the committed, the biased and the blinded. It's a tough call to pick out which opinion belongs to each group, so the best approach is to collate as many viewpoints as possible to offer a consensus.

Real fan and writer for UEFA and AIPS, Sonja Nikcevic, gives us her views on Messi as a player and how he integrates into a side.

TF-Images/Getty Images

"Messi moulds with the team he is playing for, almost disappears within it and becomes its core, but he does need to be accommodated by said team in order to perform his best—as a number of Argentina matches have shown.

"This is not to say that he doesn't have master individual performances; he does, like the recent Clasico, but less so than Ronaldo who stamps his personality and authority on any team he plays for. In a way, the team becomes Ronaldo-esque, negatively or positively."

It's an interesting idea: Can Messi become the team, whereas Ronaldo enforces one to become him? Is that the difference in their approach, their adaptability or their personality? What's undoubted is Messi's ability though, not just in possession either.

"It's only when you watch Messi live though that you see how brilliant his movement is," Nikcevic continued. "He really is the whirring motor of Barcelona."

It's not just movement off the ball, of course, where Messi is noticed. Marca's Rahul Kalvapalle compares the Argentinian's skill to a legend of yesteryear—but not the one he's usually mentioned in the same breath as, and indeed one Real Madrid fans would know of.

"I find he’s a lot more similar to Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano than Diego Maradona, because of how complete his skill-set is. Messi is the best dribbler I've ever seen and obviously a fantastic finisher, but in recent years, he’s also become unbelievably good at assisting and orchestrating.

"But it’s important to point out that Messi has played for the same team his entire life, and for many years that happened to be the most dominant team of the modern era.

"Overall, Ronaldo hasn’t had that level of quality around him in the years since he came to Spain in 2009, so his burden has been greater."

Social platform

Real Madrid have one of the most followed sport presences in the social media world, and perhaps unsurprisingly they have a very vocal fanbase online.

Big success, big players and big-money deals tend to all attract huge supporter levels, along with enormous expectations—so the big social status can work both ways, particularly when results aren't going so well.

With regard to Messi, they aren't shy about letting their feelings be known in the buildup to a Clasico fixture or indeed during it, and there were certainly a range of opinions sent in over the Argentinian No. 10. Not all are quite suitable for our attempt to offer a balanced selection of views, but it's fair to say that respect and appreciation of Messi's ability can swing wildly among Real fans.

Of course, a few were entirely happy to show their Real Madrid colours nailed firmly to the mast and little else.

The majority certainly fell to middle ground, applauding Messi's innate ability while falling short of offering outright plaudits or mentioning a token disappointment or perceived lack in his game.

"

- Top Notch/Great Ability/ More Arrogant Than People Realise. https://t.co/CcEliHFYjC

— Kroos (@Observist__) May 7, 2017"

Given Messi has won multiple Ballon d'Ors and is regarded by some as the finest ever, though, there were also a healthy few responses that simply noted the Barcelona man's greatness.

"

@karlmatchett Mesmerizing to behold, outstanding ability. His humility and chemistry on the pitch is noteworthy. Lacking only in the heading department.

— JEFF (@jeffsimon458) May 5, 2017"

"

@karlmatchett He is like a modern maradona (BETTER). His ability to control the ball and dribble is the best of all time. Quiet but LOUD on the pitch

— عُمـر♈ (@94Temimi) May 5, 2017"

It's a grey area among football fans, applauding a member of the team's biggest rivals, and perhaps more so when the duo are head-to-head battling for a league title...and the fans in question have seen a marked lack of success on that front in recent years. 

Ongoing battle

Just as when we sought views of Ronaldo, there's always a comparison from one to the other. It's as if the traditional methods of measuring success and ability simply don't encompass this duo, who can only be rated against each other.

Real Madrid fan Sully Khan is completely aware of that—and in awe of how the duo are able to respond to each other and raise their game in turn.

"We're blessed to witness them," he says. "Only last month, Cristiano hits the 100-goal mark all time in the Champions League, Messi responds and breaks the hearts of Real at the Bernabeu, then Cristiano responds again with a hat-trick against Atletico...insanity, game after game.

"I know they say they don't, but they definitely drive each other on."

Nikcevic notes the same, while also offering the thought that their respective styles could mean greater longevity for Messi.

Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images

"The obvious difference that everyone mentions: Messi is pure talent while Ronaldo is pure work and determination, making both of them, in their own ways, the best in the world.

"I think that in the long run this does mean that Messi will be able to stay at the top of his game for longer, because he puts less strain on his body than Ronaldo does."

Whether that physical difference in their game reflects a longer-term ability to impact at the highest level or not, it's sure that we're set to see plenty more yet from both players, who have shown even as recently as the past couple of weeks a mesmerising penchant to escalate individual form to improve team results, on the biggest of stages.

Real Madrid continue the fight in the Champions League, Barcelona are staging a comeback in La Liga—and it's both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi who have again played starring roles for their clubs, whether the opposition fans always want to acknowledge it or not.

All quotes obtained first-hand. Thanks to Sonja, Rahul and Sully.