A new book by Diego Torres alleges that Cristiano Ronaldo has an obscene nickname for Lionel Messi.

Ronaldo and Messi are polite to each other in public and they insist their rivalry is media-generated.

But according to some Real Madrid players, Ronaldo has a nickname for him: ‘motherf----r’; and if he sees someone from the club speaking to Leo, he also ends up being baptised ‘motherf----r’.

"This is absolutely false and I have assured my lawyer takes action to sue those responsible," Ronaldo wrote on Facebook.

"I have the utmost respect for all my professional colleagues, and Messi is obviously no exception."