Barcelona legend Hristo Stoichkov has claimed that Real Madrid should consider selling Cristiano Ronaldo to Manchester United, suggesting the Portuguese star is unhappy with constant comparisons to Lionel Messi. The former Bulgaria striker made the remarks during a Sportium promotion, stating that Real Madrid president Florentino Perez may decide to sell Ronaldo if the price is right.
Stoichkov, who played for Barcelona from 1990 to 1995, said: 'You would have to ask Florentino about Ronaldo's future. Sooner or later he will be sold by the president. Football is like that but it depends on the president. I don't know if he needs the money; if he does then it is a good moment to sell him.'
The 1994 Ballon d'Or winner also suggested that Ronaldo's recent dip in form is linked to being tired of comparisons with Messi. 'You can't doubt the quality of either one of them. Messi is where he should be but Ronaldo is in a delicate moment. All players go through bad moments, it happened to me too. Perhaps the obsession with Messi affects him. The difference between Ronaldo and Messi is he [Messi] gets compared with Pele, Maradona and Cruyff and Ronaldo only gets compared with Messi.'
Stoichkov also compared the attacking trios of Real Madrid and Barcelona, claiming the BBC (Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo) are not at the same level as MSN (Messi, Neymar, Suarez). 'They are low on morale. Between the two forward lines Barca's is better at the moment and you always have to look to see if the players are enjoying themselves or not.'
