Klopp in awe of 'extraordinary' Messi and Ronaldo amid World Cup achievements

Messi surpassed Miroslav Klose's all-time scoring record with a brace in Monday's 2-0 victory over Austria at Dallas Stadium in Arlington. 

Meanwhile, Ronaldo bagged a brace against Uzbekistan, which saw him become the first player to score at six World Cups. 

Both players are having excellent tournaments so far, pushing themselves to the limits in the twilight of their careers. 

Former Liverpool boss Klopp has been one of many stunned by the pair, who he believes should be cherished in what might be their final World Cup. 

"As a mere spectator, it naturally captivates me a bit because they are the best players of the last 10, 15 years. 

"But what was great to see was this: after the first game, in which Cristiano Ronaldo was heavily criticised - even I noticed that - to then strike back like that, and at 41 years old with an extremely lively, intense performance, I was very pleased.  

“The fact that he's still so bothered at his age when something doesn't work out is extraordinary, and his reaction is all the more impressive." 

"It's extraordinary that we get to experience this generation. It's special. And when we briefly saw each other on the sidelines and Messi kindly included us in the line of well-wishers, even as a 59-year-old, I realised just how special something like that can be.  

“Because it was special. I was just as happy to see my former player Alexis Mac Allister and have a quick chat with him. But then Messi came along. And that's something else entirely.” 

Messi now has 18 total World Cup goals for his illustrious career, while Ronaldo has 10 as both Argentina and Portugal push on to the next round.