Kevin de Bruyne has admitted that he would prefer to have Cristiano Ronaldo in his team instead of Lionel Messi as he is more of a "typical striker".
The 37-year-old has struggled for form at Manchester United this season, having scored just once in eight appearances in all competitions. Ronaldo wanted to leave the club in the summer but has stayed and will compete for a place in the side with Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, who has impressed when called upon but struggled with injury issues.
Meanwhile, Messi is more of a creative type player, like De Bruyne, with both players able to conjure-up a chance out of nothing and it's a skill not many can produce. The Argentine has started the season in impressive form, scoring six goals and chipping in with eight assists in 11 matches so far. He will no doubt be motivated to continue that form heading into the World Cup this year.
But De Bruyne has revealed it would be Ronaldo that would be in his side due to his position, with the Belgian preferring a natural forward in Ronaldo over Messi if he had to chose one. Ronaldo scored 24 goals for United last season - including 18 in the Premier League - the third-highest behind Heung-min Son and Mohamed Salah.
"I would probably say Ronaldo because he’s more of a typical striker," the Belgium international told SportBIBLE, when asked to choose his ideal teammate between the pair. "Messi is still more of a playmaker. I am a playmaker, you can give me a striker."
De Bruyne has starred for the Blues this season and was likened to Messi following his superb showing against Bournemouth last month. He has scored once and provided six assists in all competitions - the most assists out of any of his teammates.
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"De Bruyne was De Bruyne at his best, his goal was terrific," said former Premier League striker Tony Cascarino. "City are a team that’s going to pull you to shreds. Kevin De Bruyne is now the Lionel Messi of what Pep [Guardiola] had at Barcelona.
"He will just take the ball everywhere and use it. He’s pivotal to them."
The 30-year-old still has three years left on his deal at City but there have been question marks raised about his long-term future. However, when speaking at the start of the month, boss Pep Guardiola had no doubts about De Bruyne's state of mind.
He said: "It is a question for him. He has three years left. What I can say is he is miles ahead of last season in this period. Much better. I don't feel he will retire soon - that is my feeling. He likes it, he is enjoying it and playing at a high level."
