Cristiano Ronaldo has been described as football's equivalent of influential rock band AC/DC by his former team-mate, Esteban Granero.

The Real Sociedad midfielder, who spent three years playing alongside the Portugal star at the Santiago Bernabeu, was asked for a musical slant on the debate over the world's best player.

While Ronaldo would have to be "something heavy metal", Granero believes Barcelona's Lionel Messi is best compared to reggaeton - a fusion genre that emerged in Latin America in the 1990s.

"Cristiano would be, for instance, AC/DC - something heavy metal," he told AS TV at his annual 'Pirate Dinner' charity event.

"And Messi... let's say that Messi is reggaeton. But the good kind!"

Ronaldo claimed the 2016 Ballon d'Or to move to within one of the record held by Messi, who has won football's top individual prize on five occasions.

Granero says that a debate over the deserved winner is inevitable given the rivalry between Barcelona and Madrid, but he believes Ronaldo was the right choice this time around.

"It's normal that, especially in Barcelona, they discuss the fact that Cristiano has won it and not Messi," he said. "It's logical that there's a debate because you need it to fill minutes on TV.

"But I think that the Ballon d'Or to Cristiano is the fairest choice."