Lionel Messi has paid tribute to his "phenomenal" Real Madrid counterpart Cristiano Ronaldo, saying he doesn't get tired of the constant comparisons between the pair.

Arguably two of the greatest football players of all time, the Barcelona man and his La Liga rival have shared the past nine Ballon d'Ors between them -- and Champions League winner Ronaldo almost certainly will make that a perfect 10 come December.

But when asked about his rival during Argentina's latest stopover in China, Messi said they are both "armed" by the brilliance of the other and that the rest of the talk around them is just noise.

"No, I have always said it -- and [Ronaldo] from his part -- that he is armed with the presence of us both," Messi told Tencent Sports. "We try to achieve the best every year for our team, and what is said outside of that I don't think is very important. He is a phenomenal player with a lot of quality. All the world knows, and that is why he is one of the best of the world."