Kaka, Villa, Gerrard, Lampard hope Messi and Ronaldo will join MLS

MLS is home to many star players, chief among them David Villa, Kaka, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, but these icons of the game hope to be overshadowed.

All four want the world's two best footballers, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, to join them in MLS sooner rather than later, and Villa - who played alongside Messi at Barcelona - is hopeful that both will consider a move stateside as they approach the twilight stage of their respective careers.

"I hope both of them may be here," Villa told CNN Sport's Chris Murphy. "Obviously they are both two of the greatest players of today and in the history of football. The MLS is making a better impression on European soccer players, and many of them want to be here - and that will improve the league a lot."

Kaka, Ronaldo's former teammate at Real Madrid, is a little more confident.

"I think one day, probably, they're going to come to join MLS," Kaka said. "I know that depends on a lot of things. But both already said that they wanted to play here, they like the possibility to live in America. So probably one day we will have the joy of seeing these guys playing here."

Lampard and Gerrard joined New York City FC and LA Galaxy respectively last summer. Both gave glowing reviews of the league, with Lampard saying he believes Ronaldo and Messi joining MLS is "a real possibility."

"I think they'll want to, and I think they'll be embraced if they came here," Lampard told CNN. "Cristiano, particularly, I could see playing in America. I think the lifestyle would suit him - he's a showman and a great player."

Gerrard agrees with Lampard's assessment, adding that the league's profile has grown in the last decade.

"I'd certainly recommend it, not just to those two but to players around the world," Gerrard told CNN. "I'm sure they'll enjoy the life on and off the pitch because America's a super country to come and work in and enjoy.

"I know from playing with players in the English dressing rooms at home that everybody is talking about MLS now. Maybe five or 10 years ago it wasn't on the radar so much - but it is now, and I'm talking about big players."