Wenger warns Ronaldo over penchant to win individual awards

English football Arsenal's manager Arsene Wenger has warned Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo over his claim to be the best player in the world, stating his pursuit of individual awards could ruin his career.

The Portugal national team skipper insisted he believes he is better than Argentine rival Lionel Messi and has spoken of how important the World Footballer of the Year award is to him.

Wenger believes such an obsession with individual accolades could damage him, but refused to say if he feels the Portuguese is better than Messi.

"He (Ronaldo) is the best player in the world - with Messi. Messi has a little advantage on assists. But I would go for nobody because it is not my problem at the moment. I've seen careers being destroyed because players are too obsessed with individual rewards," Wenger told reporters on Thursday.

"I can tell you that maybe another day but it encourages selfishness. And it encourages people inside the game to go more for their own gain when others are in a better position. You can be No.1 in the world in March and No.250 in May. Sport is always moving," Wenger said.