Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have dominated elite football for decades, picking up a countless number of trophies, awards and records.
Many footballers dream of playing against such talent but only a select few are lucky enough to play alongside one of these greats.
As it stands, there are only 12 players in history who have been fortunate enough to share the same shirt as both Ronaldo and Messi.
Luis Suarez could become the thirteenth on that list as he negotiates a deal with Juventus after being told by new Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman that he is not in his plans moving forward. So, with that in mind, who else is in this exclusive club?
Luis Suarez could become the thirteenth player to have played with both Ronaldo and Messi
Fernando Gago
Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid between 2009-2011
Played with Messi in the Argentina national team between 2007-2017
Fernando Gago arrived at Real Madrid along with Gonzalo Higuain, during their 2006-2007 campaign.
Gago linked up well with Ronaldo to help the team win the title in LaLiga, but it wasn’t long before the defensive midfielder dropped in form.
While, in a national squad flooded with attacking talent such as Messi, Gago won well over 50 caps, an Olympic gold medal in 2009 and featured in both the 2011 Copa America and the 2014 World Cup.
Fernando Gago played in the Argentina national team with Messi, winning Olympic gold
Gabriel Heinze
Played with Ronaldo at Manchester United between 2004-2007
Played with Messi in Argentina national team between 2005-2010
Gabriel Heinze was under contract at Sporting CP when Ronaldo joined the club; however, the pair never got to play alongside each other as the defender rounded up his loan spell in Portugal before the striker was handed his debut.
It wasn’t long before Heinze got the opportunity to share the pitch with Ronaldo as the two lined up alongside each other for Manchester United.
Heinze and Ronaldo spent three years playing together, but during that time Heinze was lucky enough to also link up with Messi.
In 2005 Heinze played with the Argentinean while on international duty. The defender was part of the starting XI and scored the winning goal, whereas Messi came off the bench to replace Lisandro Lopez.
Messi did, however, work his magic and conjure up a goal just 43 seconds into his international debut.
Gabriel Heinze and Ronaldo spent three years playing together at Manchester United
Gerard Pique
Played with Ronaldo at Manchester United between 2004-06 and 2007-2008
Played with Messi at Barcelona between 2008 and present
From one Barcelona legend to another.
Gerard Pique, who is the seventh most capped Barca player of all time, has lined up alongside Messi on multiple occasions.
The pair have been team-mates since 2008 and have won the Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, European Super Cup, Copa del Ray and LaLiga crowns during their time together.
Although Pique is known for his accolades at Barca, the 33-year-old actually started his career at Manchester United – alongside Ronaldo. The pair had two spells playing alongside each other – 2004-2006 and 2007-2008.
Pique joined the English giants one year after Ronaldo but also spent one season on loan at Real Zaragoza.
Pique made 23 appearances alongside Ronaldo at United, and even scored twice in the Champions League group stages in 2007.
Gerard Pique – the seventh most capped Barca player ever – has played with Messi since 2008
Angel Di Maria
Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid between 2010-2014
Played with Messi in the Argentina national team between 2009 to present
Angel Di Maria has played with both Ronaldo and Messi for a substantial amount of time.
Di Maria joined Real Madrid the year after Ronaldo and went on to make 190 appearances for the club.
He established himself as one of the starting front three, alongside Ronaldo and Karim Benzema. The trio were known for their ability to create impressive chances and instil fear into their opponents.
The 32-year-old old picked up six trophies alongside the Portuguese striker, before moving to Ronaldo’s former club Manchester United for just one season.
Despite creating a formidable partnership with Ronaldo, Di Maria was also known for linking up with Messi on the international stage.
Di Maria joined Real Madrid the year after Ronaldo and went on to make 190 appearances
Carlos Tevez
Played with Ronaldo at Manchester United between 2007-2009
Played with Messi in the Argentina national team between 2005-2015
Carlos Tevez was a name that everyone knew for many reasons, but playing alongside Messi in Argentina’s World Cup qualification match against Peru was one of the defining moments of his career.
After breaking into the national team in 2004, this was this first time Tevez had featured for Marcelo Bielsa’s side and the first time he lined up alongside fan favourite, Messi.
Subsequently, the pair played together on the international stage for five years. Tevez’s relationship with Messi blossomed as he began to learn from the best.
Developing into a star within his own right, Tevez was scouted by a host of Premier League clubs. After initially signing for West Ham Tevez joined Manchester United, where he linked up with Ronaldo.
Carlos Tevez and Messi had played together on the international stage for five years
Paulo Dybala
Played with Ronaldo at Juventus between 2018 and present
Played with Messi in the Argentina national team between 2015 and present
Paulo Dybala has played alongside Messi and Ronaldo for club and country and is developing into quite a player.
Dybala made his international debut under Gerardo Martino in 2015 and has played alongside Messi ever since.
There have previously been rumours of Dybala and Messi joining up at club level, with the Juventus forward being linked to a move to Barca.
However, the youngster instead became Ronaldo’s team-mate – when the. Portuguese joined Juventus in 2018.
Paulo Dybala was rumoured with a move to Barca but plays alongside Ronaldo at Juventus
Gonzalo Higuain
Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid between 2009-2013 and Juventus between 2018 and present
Played with Messi in the Argentina national team between 2009-2019
Higuain established himself as part of the starting line up at Real Madrid long before Ronaldo’s arrival.
However, the Portuguese international’s arrival two years later was not quite so exciting for Higuain as the combination of Ronaldo and Benzema saw his first-team opportunities diminish at the Bernabeu.
Being forced out on loan to both AC Milan and Chelsea, Higuain only began playing with Ronaldo again last season, this time in Turin.
Alongside Messi, Higuain has reached a World Cup final, only to miss the big chance to seal victory for Argentina against Germany.
Gonzalo Higuain was pushed out at Madrid by Ronaldo but played with Messi internationally
Henrik Larsson
Played with Ronaldo at Manchester United in 2007
Played with Messi at Barcelona between 2004-2006
Henrik Larsson experienced brief partnerships with both Messi and Ronaldo during his time at Barcelona and Manchester United.
Having established himself as a world-class player in Scotland – scoring 242 goals for Celtic – Larsson was highly sought after on the European stage.
Barca signed Larsson to accompany Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto’o and Deco for two seasons.
During his time at the club he lined up alongside Messi on multiple occasions and even found himself on the scoresheet next to the Argentinean international.
Henrik Larsson featured regularly for Manchester United with Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney
Larsson later left Barca and joined Manchester United in 2007.
Going from one superstar to another, Larsson regularly featured with Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Louis Saha and current United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Despite spending just one season at the club, Larsson made a name for himself – scoring in all competitions during the year that United won the Premier League and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Nelson Semedo
Played with Ronaldo in the Portugal national team between 2015 and present
Played with Messi at Barcelona between 2017 and present
As it stands, Nelson Semedo is currently playing alongside both Ronaldo and Messi.
Semedo has trained alongside Ronaldo for Portugal for several years but has only received 14 caps. Whereas, Ronaldo has made 164 appearances for his country since debuting in 2003.
Semedo has also lined up alongside Messi for Catalan giants, Barcelona. During his first season at the club, the now 26-year-old made 35 official appearances.
Much to Messi’s delight, Semedo assisted the superstar six times in his first 98 games for the club.
Nelson Semedo trained with Ronaldo for Portugal for several years before making his debut
Ezequiel Garay
Played with Ronaldo at Real Madrid between 2009-2011
Played with Messi in the Argentina national team between 2007-2015
Despite playing alongside Ronaldo, Ezequiel Garay said choosing to leave Real Madrid in 2011 was the ‘best decision’ of his career.
Garay joined Madrid for £9million from Racing Santander in 2008 and even won a Copa del Rey medal in 2011 but could not secure a regular place in the starting XI.
Garay did, however, link up with Ronaldo during their 6-0 win over Real Zaragoza in December 2009 to score a phenomenal goal.
Having spent the majority of his time at Real Madrid warming the bench, Garay played an essential role for his country. Garay lined up alongside Messi for the better part of eight years on the international stage.
Ezequiel Garay lined up alongside Messi for the better part of eight years internationally
Deco
Played with Ronaldo in the Portugal national team between 2003-2010
Played with Messi at Barcelona between 2004-2008
Deco played an instrumental role in the rise of Messi. The attacking midfielder was the one who was substituted to make way for Messi’s debut for Barcelona.
Since then, Messi has become Barca’s all-time top scorer with 634 goals in 731 games, and LaLiga’s record goalscorer with 444 in 485 appearances.
Deco was also present for Ronaldo’s international debut for Portugal against Kazakhstan in 2003.
The pair went on to create a formidable partnership, with their first combined goal coming in 2004 at the Euros.
Deco (left) was the one who was substituted to make way for Messi’s debut for Barcelona
Andre Gomes
Played with Ronaldo in the Portugal national team between 2014 and present
Played with Messi at Barcelona between 2016-2018
In the summer of 2016, Andre Gomes faced the biggest decision of his football career – whether to join Barcelona or Real Madrid.
Gomes made up his mind and signed for the Catalan giants in a deal worth around £31m. Big things were expected of Gomes as they had believed he would be Andres Iniesta’s successor and a partner to Messi.
But the Portugal international struggled to find his form at the Nou Camp and only lasted two seasons alongside Messi.
During his dismal time at Barca, Gomes even dropped out of the international set up – having first lined up alongside Ronaldo at the age of 19 during a friendly against Ecuador in February 2013.
He later rejoined the squad after suffering a severe ankle injury. The pair are expected to provide their country with a series of goals this year and next in the Nations League and rearranged Euros.
Andre Gomes first lined up alongside Ronaldo internationally at the age of 19 in February 2013