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Hristo Stoichkov: 'Cristiano Ronaldo obsessed with Lionel Messi'

Hristo Stoichkov believes that Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo is unsettled because he is obsessed with Barcelona's Lionel Messi.

Former Barcelona striker Hristo Stoichkov has claimed that Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo is obsessed with on-field rival Lionel Messi.

Ronaldo has appeared unsettled at Real following jeers from supporters at the Santiago Bernabeu during the recent victory over Levante, which came on the back of a turbulent few weeks for the club.

Stoichkov says that Ronaldo's attitude must improve if he is to help his team to win games and regain the support of the fans.

"You can't doubt the quality of either Ronaldo or Messi. Messi is where he should be and Cristiano is going through a difficult time but all players go through rough patches. I was whistled as well in my time. It's up to the coach to make decisions and to speak to the player," the Bulgarian told The Independent.

"Maybe the obsession with Messi is affecting him but I'm not inside his head. Messi motivates his teammates and, if Ronaldo doesn't score, it affects his team.

"At times like that you have to display your personality; 99% of players can't answer the question 'why am I being booed?' Messi is at the level of Pele, Diego Maradona and Johan Cruyff and what annoys Cristiano is that he is only compared to Messi."

Ronaldo has scored 41 goals in 39 appearances for Los Blancos in all competitions this season.

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Barcelona's Argentinian forward Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring during the Spanish league football match Rayo Vallecano de Madrid vs Barcelona at the Vallecas stadium in Madrid on October 4, 2014
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Real Madrid29226164204472
2Barcelona29197360342664
3GironaGirona29195559342562
4Athletic Bilbao29168550262456
5Atletico MadridAtletico29174854342055
6Real Sociedad291210742311146
7Real BetisBetis29101273433142
8Valencia28117103232040
9Villarreal29108114751-438
10Getafe2991193742-538
11Las PalmasLas Palmas29107122932-337
12Osasuna29106133343-1036
13AlavesAlaves2988132635-932
14Mallorca29612112535-1030
15Rayo Vallecano29611122538-1329
16Sevilla29610133644-828
17Celta Vigo2969143244-1227
18CadizCadiz29313132040-2022
19Granada2828183058-2814
20Almeria29110182857-2913


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