Blatter apology to Ronaldo after ‘hairdresser’ jab

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has described recent comments made by Fifa president Sepp Blatter about Cristiano Ronaldo as showing a “lack of respect” and revealed the Spanish giants have been in touch with the world governing body asking for a retraction.

Sepp Blatter: Prefers Messi. Picture: Getty

Madrid have taken umbrage over Blatter’s response after being asked to compare Ronaldo with Barcelona star Lionel Messi while speaking at the Oxford Union last week.

Blatter said both players were exceptional but described Messi as a “good boy” before going on to say that “one has more expenses for the hairdresser than the other”.

Blatter tried to defuse the row last night by tweeting: “Dear @Cristiano. I apologise if you were upset by my light-hearted answer at private event on Friday. I never meant to offend you.”

Ancelotti, asked earlier about the comments said: “I’m aware our president [Florentino Perez] has sent a letter to Fifa asking to retract what I consider to be a lack of respect to a very serious, very professional player.”

Blatter, during a question and answer session at Oxford University, started off by heaping praise on Messi, saying: “They are both exceptional players but they are totally different and football is about the difference of styles, because Lionel Messi is a good boy who every mother and father would like to have at home. He’s a good man, he’s very fast, he’s not exuberant, he’s playing well, he’s dancing, he’s a kind man, he’s a good boy.

“And that’s what makes him so popular and naturally he will always get a lot of goals because he is this nice man, and he plays well and scores goals.”

Then, when appearing to talk about Ronaldo, Blatter said “the other one, this is something else. The other one is like a commander on the field of play,” before the Fifa chief stood up from his chair and walked across the podium in comic fashion.

Blatter added: “But this is the other side of football and that’s good to have such commanders on the field also. Because you don’t have the same attitude, and that gives life to football and one has more expenses for the hairdresser than the other, but that doesn’t matter. . .

“I like both of them, but I prefer Messi.”

Ronaldo and Messi were both on a 23-man shortlist for Fifa’s Ballon d’Or award which was announced early yesterday morning, with the winner to be unveiled on 13 January in Zurich.