Cristiano Ronaldo stopped following Gary Lineker on Instagram. The reason? Lineker named Messi as the greatest player of all time — and left Ronaldo out of his football "Mount Rushmore" entirely.

Speaking on his podcast The Rest Is Football alongside co-hosts Alan Shearer and Micah Richards, the former England striker revealed that the Al-Nassr forward had unfollowed him on Instagram. The confession sparked fits of laughter from Shearer and Richards, and Lineker himself took it in good humour.

Lineker's Football Mount Rushmore

Lineker has been outspoken about who he considers the four greatest players in football history. His "Mount Rushmore," in his own words: Pelé, Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi, and Ronaldo Nazário (the Brazilian Ronaldo, often called Fenômeno). Cristiano Ronaldo did not make the list.

Lineker explained his reasoning:

"He's [Messi] my favourite player of all time, quite simply because he's the best player of all time, in my view. Even the difference between some of the real greats — the Cruyffs, Zidane, Ronaldo — the fact that you can then have another level above them, quite clearly above them, is truly remarkable."

On Brazilian Ronaldo specifically, Lineker added: "Without his injuries, I think we'd have had Brazilian Ronaldo in that conversation. But unfortunately, he did, but he still did incredible things, and he was joyous. So, if I had four, you know, the 'Mount Rushmore' thing, yeah, that would be my four. So, Pelé, Maradona, Messi, Fenômeno."

That comment, it appears, did not go down well in Cristiano Ronaldo's circle.

Lineker on the Unfollow

Reflecting on the snub, Lineker joked he would "get over" the disappointment:

"He doesn't like me very much, Cristiano Ronaldo. I didn't upset him by anything I said about him. Other than the fact I'm honest and think overall Messi's a better footballer. He unfollowed me on Instagram. I'll get over it."

"I will always like him. I've met him a lot of times. I know he's got the hump with me. But that's OK."

Then came the olive branch — directed straight at the five-time Ballon d'Or winner:

"Please, Cristiano, call me, let's be friends again."

Ronaldo's Unfollow History

This is not the first time Ronaldo has reacted this way to a perceived slight.

In February 2026, on his 41st birthday (February 5), Ronaldo unfollowed Real Madrid on Instagram after the club did not post a public happy-birthday message on X or Instagram. The other clubs Ronaldo has played for — Sporting CP, Manchester United, Juventus, plus current club Al-Nassr and the Portugal national team — all marked the day on social media. Real Madrid did publish a YouTube compilation of all 451 of his goals for the club, which gathered over 200,000 views in its first day, but the absence of an Instagram or X post was enough for Ronaldo.

He has also had longer-running public tensions with former Manchester United teammates Gary Neville and Wayne Rooney, who have repeatedly criticised him as pundits. In his November 2022 Piers Morgan interview on TalkTV — the bombshell sit-down that effectively ended his second Manchester United spell — Ronaldo hit back:

"I don't understand people like that, maybe they want to be front page of the news or they want jobs."

A Familiar Pattern

Ronaldo has built one of the most decorated careers in football history — five Ballon d'Or trophies, five Champions League titles, more international goals than any player in men's football. But comparisons with Messi, who is widely seen by pundits as the GOAT, remain his most sensitive subject.

Lineker has extended an olive branch. Whether Ronaldo will accept it — or keep the unfollow as a clear message — is up to him.