Messi v. Ronaldo

For those who follow the world soccer stage, there is an ongoing debate which player is better: Lionel Messi or Christiano Ronaldo. If you notice soccer jerseys, Messi's Barcelona jersey is red and blue striped, it has unicef on the front and he wears number 10; while Ronaldo's Real Madrid jersey is either white or black; it has bwin on the front and he wears number 7. If jerseys worn and displayed in Nicaragua are any indication, then Messi is the people's choice here!

Although baseball is Nicaragua's first sport, you see muchachos playing futbol on streets in all types of neighborhoods. Most of the balls are worn and some are even flat - yet that does not deter the soccer games at all. Nielsen and I went for a run the other day to Lago del Nicaragua (which incidentally may be the only lake on our planet to have sharks!) and saw two young muchachos playing futbol on a small concrete field that more closely resembled a basketball court. We walked over and started kicking the ball with them and before we knew it they challenged us to a game of 2 on 2. The ball did not have any air, but that just meant you had to kick it harder. Nielsen also had an opportunity to kick a soccer ball for hours with his new friend Luis in the streets of Leon the other day. What a great time--the muchachos all have raw skills and seem to have a zeal for the game that is wonderful to watch.

Worlds away in the major leagues of soccer, the debate continues between Messi and Ronaldo. There are websites dedicated to this important issue. Messi was born in Argentina in 1987; Ronaldo in Portugal in 1985. Messi is a playmaker; Ronaldo a striker and wingman. This year Ronaldo had 53 goals in all competitions, Messi had 50. The two are the highest paid players in the game, with Messi's estimated salary at $44 million annually and Ronaldi at $39 million. My quick math says they together earn about 2 billion cordobas in Nicaraguan currency.

Posted by David