Football Feature: Dani Alves comments on the "scuffle" with Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo was a part of Real Madrid's roster from 2009 until 2018, while the fullback was a part of Barcelona for eight years (2008-16). 

Barcelona won La Liga five times, and Real Madrid won it only once over the seven years of competition between both sides.  

Every El Clasico was a slugfest because of the intense animosity between the two teams, and Ronaldo's no-holds-barred approach to winning. It got more complicated when you included Ronaldo's rivalry with Lionel Messi.

Alves and Messi were teammates at Barcelona for several years. The Brazilian has revealed that he and Ronaldo had issues during the club's rivalry with Real Madrid.

The Brazil international has revealed that he has never spoken openly about his sentiments towards Ronaldo because of the intense rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Alves is more at ease discussing Spanish football and his old opponents at Madrid, notably Ronaldo, now that he plays club football in Mexico with Club Universidad Nacional.

During a podcast interview with UNAM Pumas teammate Efrian Valverde, the Brazilian player discussed the situation involving the former Real Madrid superstar.

"There was a time, because of the rivalry, I went to greet him and he ignored me," added Alves.

"There was a controversy that never came out, but in the dressing room of the Ballon d'Or ceremony we had a scuffle, I greeted everyone and he didn't greet me because of what the Barcelona-Real Madrid rivalry was generating outside. But how can I not respect a guy who has achieved everything based on hard work and putting his heart and soul into it?"

The former Barcelona star also spoke highly of Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo, noting that Ronaldo's success in the sport was due more to his work ethic than to any innate ability.

Dani Alves chooses between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi

Alves, who recently departed Barcelona after the second term, expressed his respect for Ronaldo but gave reasons to believe former teammate Lionel Messi is superior to Ronaldo.

On why Messi is greater than Ronaldo, Alves said, "He was born with the talent to play football and to be in another world that only he can reach."

It's unclear how appreciative Ronaldo will be of Alves' compliments, especially since the Brazilian defender implied that the Portuguese forward is not as good as his great rival Lionel Messi.

Over the past decade, Ronaldo and Messi have dominated European football, sharing 12 Ballon d'Or awards. Barcelona's great Messi has a 7-1 record for Golden Ball victories, while Ronaldo has a 5-1 history.

Messi is in the United States with the Argentina team as they prepare to play a friendly match against Jamaica. Meanwhile, Ronaldo and Portugal will play Spain on Tuesday for the Nations League.

A call-up to the world cup team would put Alves, at the age of 39, ahead of Roberto Carlos, a former Real Madrid fullback, as Brazil's second-most capped player.

Although Alves has made many appearances for Brazil, Carlos has (124 vs 125), the former Barcelona defender is unlikely to eclipse Cafu (142 total appearances) as the country's all-time leader in caps.