Frank Leboeuf has been critical of Cristiano Ronaldo in recent months, even saying that the Portugal captain should consider retirement in early 2025. However, he has now made a bold statement regarding the 2026 FIFA World Cup after the Al-Nassr superstar guided them to the finals.
Leboeuf Wants Cristiano Ronaldo To Win FIFA World Cup
France’s 1998 FIFA World Cup winner knows a thing or two about winning major trophies and has told Ronaldo that winning the tournament is bigger than the number of Ballon d’Ors in his tally. He wants the Portuguese superstar to win the 2026 edition with Portugal, as Lionel Messi did with Argentina in 2022.
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The Frenchman admitted that the 40-year-old has done more as a player in his career than he has, but the World Cup is special and cannot be compared to any individual trophy.
He told GOAL, “He’s not lying because what he has achieved is already fantastic, but Ronaldo and Messi – out of all the titles, it was a race between those two for the Ballon d’Or, it became who do you prefer? It became a constant question – are you more Messi or Ronaldo?
“For more than a decade it was that. Those players already achieved big titles, but it’s true that a World Cup makes a difference. I have sometimes criticised Ronaldo for what he has done and I have been hammered by his fans. Some people say: ‘What have you achieved in your life?’ I say: ‘I won the World Cup, he didn’t’. It’s the easy answer!”
“Of course he has done better than me, he’s a fantastic player, but winning a World Cup makes a difference – even if you are Frank Leboeuf, but even more so if you are Ronaldo after Messi has won it. It was like in 2022 the World Cup was dedicated to Messi. I really hope that 2026 will be dedicated to Cristiano Ronaldo. That would be fantastic for him to get a World Cup, and for Portugal. Portugal have a hell of a team, so it’s possible.”
However, Leboeuf believes that Ronaldo is not ready to be playing matches every three days. He has urged the national team manager, Roberto Martinez, to use the Al-Nassr forward as a super sub in the game, as he would have a greater impact on the pitch than starting every match and fading out.
He believes the 40-year-old will not be able to last 90 minutes in every game because of his age, despite his fitness. Ronaldo has already admitted that the 2026 edition would be his final World Cup because of the same reason.
