Cristiano Ronaldo’s reported nickname for Lionel Messi is not nice, not nice at all

It seems the two biggest names in the game are civil to each others faces, and a bit less so away from each other.

Very interesting stuff coming out of Spain today about the two biggest stars in Spanish football, and the rest of the world. Spanish football journalist Guillem Balague has a new book out on Lionel Messi, called MESSI, and in it he has lots of juicy details about the two most fascinating figures in the game. There has always been lots of speculation about the rivalry between Ronaldo and Messi and the exact nature of their relationship and Balague has given some insight to that, with the extracts in today's Telegraph. The book mentions how Ruud Gullit noticed at the 2013 Ballon d'Or that the pair had a 'cold relationship' but it is the revelation about what Ronaldo calls Messi in the Real Madrid dressing room that is most intruiging. According to Ballague, as related to him by some Real Madrid players, Ronaldo calls Messi 'motherf***er'. And, any Real Madrid player he sees hanging out with Messi also gets the same name. Must have been tough for Angel di Maria at times. The book also says that the Madrid players also make jokes about Messi being Ronaldo's dog or puppet, but that can probably be put down to normal slagging that happens in any team sport. Anyway, the book goes on to say that Ronaldo sees his relationship with his great rival as similar to Ireland's with the UK, which we assume means he thinks it remains civil but underlying tensions may remain deep down. Maybe he means he enjoys watching Messi's TV stations and shopping in his shops. Update: Ronaldo has issued a statement on his Facebook page on the claims made by Ballague. "News is circulating that I allegedly made offending remarks regarding Lionel Messi. "This is absolutely false and I have assured my lawyer takes action to sue those responsible. I have the utmost respect for all my professional colleagues, and Messi is obviously no exception."