The world was again shown the dominance of Lionel Messi as a football athlete on Tuesday (11/30/2021). Messi once again lifted the Ballon d'Or trophy, the award that is said to be the highest achievement for an individual in the world of football.

The event was being held at Theatre du Chatelet, Paris, France, attended by megastars of the world of football, both male and female. The award was initiated by the French sports magazine France Football. Last year’s awarding event was canceled due to the pandemic.

Some other names on the list of Ballon d'Or recipients are Robert Lewandowski of Bayern Munich and Jorginho of Chelsea, who finished runners-up and third place. Both lost points to Messi, who got a total of 613 points.

This is the seventh time for Messi to receive this prestigious award. He won the same award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, and 2019.

 

 

 

 

 

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Messi's five-time Ballon d'Or rival, Cristiano Ronaldo, decided not to attend the event. In addition, Ronaldo was also knocked out of the top five by only getting 178 points.

Messi admitted that he was delighted to receive this award. This year was challenging because he had to leave his beloved club Barcelona to join a French club. The adaptation process was not easy, but Messi had found a well-fitted rhythm like competing for the Catalan club in the last few actions on the green field.

"Today, I'm in Paris. I'm pleased and really happy. I want to keep fighting and achieve new achievements. I don't know how many more years, but I'm enjoying myself. I thank my teammates at Barca, Paris and the Argentina national team.

I am looking forward to this new stage in my life at PSG and to achieving more," Messi said as he accepted the trophy.

Previously, Messi always won individual awards with Barcelona. This is the first time Messi has won the award in a new team. This makes Messi become the first player in PSG's history to win the Ballon d'Or.

Messi put a lot of hopes into seeing the best potential from PSG with the new team, including getting the European Champions League trophy.

Especially for his closest competitor, Lewandowski, Messi has his own words. Lewandowski won various awards with Bayern Munich in 2020; unfortunately, there was no Ballon d'Or award ceremony. Many people think this is unfair to Lewandowski.

"Robert, you deserve your Ballon d'Or. Last year, everyone agreed that you are the winner of this award," Messi said.

Messi himself performed brilliantly last season. When he was still in his Barcelona uniform, he brought the 2021 Copa del Rey trophy. In addition, Messi became the Spanish League's top scorer with a record of 32 goals and 12 assists. At the international level, Messi was fighting for Argentina to win the 2021 Copa America.

Lewandowski did not go home empty-handed on the Ballon d'Or awarding night. The striker received the Striker of the Year award. Lewandowski also expressed his gratitude to the journalists who have voted for him, and he feels that no player can win the individual prize without the help of the strongest team and loyal fans.

"I want to thank my teammates in the Polish national team and at Bayern Munich. I want to thank my fans for supporting me. Above all, thank you to my family, and my friends and the management team for becoming the foundation of my success," said Lewandowski.

So what about Ronaldo? On the night of the Ballon d'Or award, Ronaldo made a statement to straighten out the issues raised by the editor-in-chief of France Football, Pascal Ferre, the organizer of the Ballon d'Or. Ferre said that Ronaldo has one ambition only: to retire with more Ballons d'Or than Messi. Ferre claims Ronaldo made the statement to him.

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Cristiano Ronaldo (@cristiano)

Ronaldo, whose name was mentioned, was upset. He did not acknowledge any of the statements from Ferre and thought Ferre did it to increase the publicity of his show.

"Pascal Ferre lied; he used my name to promote himself and to promote the place he worked for. It is unacceptable that the person responsible for awarding such a prestigious prize could lie in this way, with great disrespect for someone who has always respected France Football and Ballon d'Or," Ronaldo said in his Instagram post.

The Manchester United star also said Ferre lied again during the trophy presentation gala. Ferre said Ronaldo's absence was due to the slight chance on the awards’ winners.  

"I always want to congratulate those who win, with a fair play that has guided my career from the start, and I do so because I've never played against anyone. I always win for myself and for the club I represent, for those who love me. I didn't win against anyone," Ronaldo said.