Lionel Messi v Cristiano Ronaldo is one of football’s most hotly-contested debates – and now it is responsible for a divorce

The Barcelona and Real Madrid stars have undoubtedly been the best two players in the world over the past decade, winning five Ballon d’Ors each.

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But which one is the best? Well that is a matter of opinion and heated discussions take place every day in pubs and on social media.

For one Russian couple, though, it has all got a bit too much and their differences of opinion have led to a split.

Russian’s Arsen and Lyudmila met during the 2002 World Cup, but 16 years later and the greatest tournament in football has proved their undoing.

That is because Arsen is a big Messi fan, whilst Lyudmila sides with Ronaldo, and it seems the mocking from one side got too much.

“She told me that from the beginning of this World Cup, Messi didn’t know how to play,” Arsen told Russian newspaper Argumenty i Fakty.

“She mocked Messi and said he couldn’t even score a penalty against Iceland.

“I could not contain myself and told her what I thought about the vain Ronaldo, the Portuguese national team and all the clubs she likes.

“Then I took my belongings and left her forever.”

The duo live in the city of Chelyabinsk, in the Ural Mountains, and once Arsen had left, he went straight to the local courthouse and filed for divorce.