"I have always had a cordial relationship with Messi," Cristiano Ronaldo told Movistar via ESPN back in December.
"As I have said before, for 12, 13, 14 years, I have been sharing prizes with him. I never saw him as a rival. He always tried the best for his team, and I tried the best for mine. I always got on well with him. I am sure he will say the same if you ask him.
"But we know in football, people always look for a rivalry to create more excitement.
"It's always beautiful to play against him. Obviously people will talk about our rivalry when we meet, but for me it's just a great privilege.
"Messi is the same as ever [on the pitch]. Barcelona are in a difficult moment, but they are still Barca. I am sure they will come out of it. All teams have bad runs, but Barcelona are a very good team."
Earlier in the season, Barcelona faced off against Juventus in the group stages of the Champions League.
In December, it was Ronaldo who came out on top, scoring two penalties to help his Juve side to a comfortable 3-0 win over Barcelona top the group.
In the reverse fixture, Barcelona had beaten Juventus 2-0, with Messi also scoring a penalty.
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'He told me I was super important': James Rodriguez names the club that wanted to sign him after Real Madrid
"I had everything arranged with Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid did not let me leave. I spoke with Cholo [Diego Simeone], he told me that I was a super important player. It was almost done," James Rodriguez has told ESPN.
"Why didn't it happen? You have to ask Florentino [Perez]," the Columbian superstar added.
Instead of leaving for Atletico in 2019, James stayed for another year at Real Madrid before completing a free switch to Everton to work under Carlo Ancelotti.
The 29-year-old has scored 5 goals and provided 8 assists for the Toffees in 21 appearances this season.
'I spoke to Raiola yesterday': Borussia Dortmund responds after Haaland's meetings with Barca and Real Madrid
Borussia Dortmund CEO Michael Zorc has commented on the transfer speculation surrounding Erling Haaland.
"Yesterday I spoke to Mino Raiola," he said as quoted by Max Bielefeld on Twitter. "We’ve made our intentions very clear."
Dortmund are not planning to sell Haaland this summer.
As was previously reported, Erling's agent Mino Raiola and the player's father Alf-Inge met with the representatives of both Real Madrid and Barcelona, discussing the striker's potential move to La Liga.
