Messi and Mourinho top rich list
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Messi and Mourinho top rich list
By ESPNsoccernet staff
GettyImagesLionel Messi: Leading the way in skills and money.Lionel Messi and Jose Mourinho are the richest men in football according to France Football magazine survey.
Barcelona forward Messi, the two-time World Player of the Year, brought home €31 million from his salary and publicity deals in 2011, just ahead of Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo (€27.5 million) and Manchester United's Wayne Rooney (€20.7 million)..Real Madrid manager Mourinho topped the manager's rich list with an income of €13.5 million, ahead of Barcelona's Pep Guardiola (€10.5 million) and former Inter Milan coach Rafael Benitez (€10.2 million). England manager Fabio Capello came fourth with the Italian receiving a salary of €8.5 million.
The English Premier League appears the most lucrative league of all with seven representatives in the top 20 list of highest paid players.
Two former Premier League stars, David Beckham and Thierry Henry, now playing in the MLS in the United States, are ranked fifth and 11 with salaries of €19 million and €13.6 million respectively.