Villarreal Condemns Abuse Of Nicolas Pepe Following GOAT Verdict

Last Updated:December 10, 2025, 23:54 IST

Pepe received a barrage of online abuse after giving Argentine World Cup winner Lionel Messi the edge over Portuguese talisman Cristiano Ronaldo.

Nicolas Pepe. (X)

La Liga club Villarreal backed Nicolas Pepe following the racist abuse he received after giving Argentine World Cup winner Lionel Messi the edge over Portuguese talisman Cristiano Ronaldo.

Pepe likened Messi to Goku and Ronaldo to Vegeta from the anime Dragon Ball Z, while also adding no player comes close to the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner.

“Villarreal CF condemns any act of verbal or physical violence and sends all support and strength to our player Nicolas Pepe, who has been the victim of racist abuse. We stand with you," the club said.

Pepe expressed his gratitude to the Spanish side for backing him during a testing time for him following his omission from he Ivory Coast squad.

“Double pain for me. It’s football, it’s life. Thank you to La Liga, to my club Villarreal and to all those who have supported me after these last days of harassment and racism. Good luck to my teammates," the former Arsenal winger said.

weighed in on the Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo debate, giving the Argentine World Cup winner the edge over the Portuguese superstar.

“Cristiano Ronaldo does a lot of interviews, and he talks too much about Messi, and that’s how you see that he is number 2," Pepe said.

“You know Dragon Ball Z? Vegeta always talked like that and who never talked? Goku."

“Ronaldo has that same frustration that Messi is always ahead of him," he explained.

“As a footballer? Messi slaps everyone, he’s an otherworldly being and we’ll never see a player like him again," the former Arsenal winger said.

“In discussions about Messi and Ronaldo, I say Messi. When you talk about statistics and what each player does, there are those who might say Ronaldo, but if you’re following football closely because the experts and everyone in the field, in fact, say Messi," he explained.

“Forget the statistics, forget who jumps high, who shoots powerfully, just focus on the football itself! Messi is a crazy thing."

“Neymar at the peak of his form looks directly into Cristiano’s eyes, forget about the statistics. However, he doesn’t look into Messi’s eyes, Messi gives him two slaps on the face," he opined.

“Since we’re talking about real things here, ever since Ronaldo moved to Saudi he’s only been scoring Penalties to reach 1000 goals," Pepe added.

News sports football Villarreal Condemns Abuse Of Nicolas Pepe Following GOAT Verdict

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