Cristiano Ronaldo Jr has played for Portugal U15. This 2010-born boy - with his figure, running figure, and way of celebrating his great father - is becoming the center of attention. Thiago Messi, 2 years younger, is also impressing in the Inter Miami youth team jersey. If nothing changes, in just a few years, the youth football stage will welcome a special parallel: Ronaldo Jr and Thiago - the "F1s" of the legendary Ronaldo - Messi race.
The age gap between Ronaldo Jr and Thiago is exactly 869 days - exactly equal to the distance between Ronaldo and Messi. That coincidence is as fate. For nearly two decades, Ronaldo and Messi split the football world, creating an unprecedented debate, even when they are in the final steps of their career. One side is a genius born to play football, the other side is a symbol of will and hard work. The chase of goals, titles, records between the two fathers created the milestones that were too difficult to rush, if not impossible.
Can the F1 generation continue to write that history? The answer, perhaps, will not lie in technical qualities or goals. Ronaldo Jr has shown impressive goalscoring ability in the Al Nassr youth team. Thiago is also making his own mark - as the match that scored 11 goals last February. But above all, what they have to carry is not just the ball, but the giant shadow of their father.
They are born and have reached the finish line. But being born into the spotlight is also a form of pressure. They will not be themselves if they continue to live under the prejudice: "must be good as your father". And it is difficult to be the other person, as every touch is compared. The F1 generation race, if any, will not be easy. Because the name "R Ronaldo" or "Messi" behind the shirt will be both a launching pad and a barrier.
But it is also from those pressures that, if they overcome them, they will prove their mettle. At that time, world football may witness a new chapter, of Ronaldo Jr with Thiago. Another era, another debate...
But now, let them play football like children. Let the dream start from the pitch, not from expectations.
