Ronaldo replaces Messi as the highest-rated player in FIFA 17

Poor form.

News by Wesley Yin-Poole Former Editor-in-Chief

Updated on Sept. 6, 2016

Who's better? Ronaldo or Messi? EA reckons, currently, it's Ronaldo.

The petulant Portuguese sulk machine is the top-rated player in FIFA 17, EA has confirmed. In last year's game he was second, behind his long-standing rival, Lionel Messi.

Real Madrid's Ronaldo is rated 94 in FIFA 17, with 92 pace, 92 shooting, 91 dribbling and 80 physicality. In FIFA 16 Ronaldo was rated 93.

Barcelona's bleach blonde and bearded forward Lionel Messi is rated 93 (he was rated 94 in last year's game). Messi misses out on top spot, then, but he is the top-ranked dribbler in FIFA 17 with 96. And why not? After all, for Lionel Messi, running with the ball isn't taxing.

So, how come Ronaldo leapfrogs Messi for this year's game? Well, Ronaldo just won Euro 2016 with Portugal, despite his abject performances during the tournament. So there is that.

Last season, Messi scored a paltry 26 goals in La Liga, compared to Ronaldo's 35, and six in the Champions League compared to Ronaldo's 16. So maybe there is on-the pitch justification.

But maybe Messi's slip into second place has something to do with happenings off-the pitch. Konami, maker of FIFA rival PES, has a new partnership with Barcelona that begins with PES 2017. PES now has the exclusive rights to recreate Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium. There's even an FCB Edition of PES 2017.

So it's easy to see why Messi, who was on the cover of FIFA in recent years, is no longer on FIFA promotional material. FIFA 17 has Borussia Dortmund attacker Marco Reus on the cover.

Is Messi the victim of publisher politics? Poor Messi. He just wants to play football.

Anyway, here are the top 10 rated players in FIFA 17, which is a disgrace because Eden Hazard, who plays for Chelsea, by far the greatest team the world has ever seen, is better than them all.