Cristiano Ronaldo told he's "not even in top five players in history"

Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has been told he is "not even in top five players in history" by Antonio Cassano.

The former Italy striker, who played for Real Madrid, Roma and both Milan clubs during his 18-year career, has named a quintet of stars from down the years who beat Ronaldo in his personal ranking for the greatest footballer of all-time.

Speaking on legendary fellow Azzurri forward Christian Vieiri's Twitch channel, Bobo TV, via AS, Cassano confidently declared: "Enough theatre.

"Is Cristiano Ronaldo the best in the history of football?

"He is not even in the top five," the 39-year-old, who retired in 2017, stated.

Cassano believes five players in history are better than Ronaldo

"For me, [Lionel] Messi, Pele, [Diego] Maradona, [Johan] Cruyff and Ronaldo [Nazario] are on another level."

Ronaldo has scored five goals in seven starts since sensationally returning to Old Trafford from Juventus in the summer transfer window.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner, alongside Messi, is considered the best of his generation but is understandably showing signs of decline at the age of 36.

According to Marca, though, ex-Red Devils manager Sir Alex Ferguson believes Ronaldo deserves to win another Ballon d'Or, having 'broken record after record this year.

And the United forward's agent, Jorge Mendes, has also launched a campaign, telling France Football that his client deserves it 'more than ever.'

"The figures and statistics linked to the name of Cristiano Ronaldo speak for him and should be enough in my opinion for him to win another Ballon d'Or," Mendes claimed.

"The absolutely remarkable total of 115 goals for the Portuguese national team makes him the record holder in the history of men's international football.

"This year he broke this 15-year-old record [for most international goals], to which he can add that to being the top scorer in the history of professional football.

"All these achievements, which represent the greatest performance in football history, should be decisive in the awarding of the trophy, as he continues to demonstrate that he is, without a doubt, the best football player in the world of all time," Mendes said, as he strongly disagreed with Cassano.

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The agent added: "It is true that it is an individual trophy, but let's not forget that Cristiano Ronaldo was the top scorer in the demanding Serie A and he was also the top scorer in the last European Championship.

"He holds the record for goals in the Champions League and he is the only player in the world to have won everything in three different countries with the maximum competitiveness, as was the case in England, Italy and Spain.

"All this at the age of 36, with absolutely unique consistency, commitment and a phenomenal ability to overcome difficulties.

"In my opinion, this year the Ballon d'Or has a name: Cristiano Ronaldo. For me, he has never deserved it so much."