MIRROR
Cristiano Ronaldo has insisted the Ballon d’Or and FIFA The Best awards are ‘losing credibility’ due to Lionel Messi‘s recent wins.
Messi has won the Ballon d’Or a record eight times, including last year’s award. He was also recently named the Fifa Best Male Player of 2023, surprisingly beating out Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe to pick up his third win in that award.
Ronaldo was not even shortlisted for the later and also failed to make the top 30 of the Ballon d’Or, having finished only 20th in 2022. The superstar attacker was left annoyed by his exclusion, having scored 54 goals for Al-Nassr in the last calendar year.
That record meant that he was world football’s highest scorer across 2023. And having failed to gain any recognition for that achievement, Ronaldo has now hit out at the awards for losing their credibility.
“It’s not to say that Messi didn’t deserve it, or Haaland or even Mbappe… but the numbers are there and the numbers don’t deceive. You have to consider the entire season,” Ronaldo told Record.
“The numbers are facts. If you go back and see what happened at Manchester United and the national team, people actually considered me lost… But the truth is that I focused and had a great period at Al Nassr, that’s why I scored 54 goals.
“As long as my head and body are fine, and I enjoy football, I will continue to play. Right now, I feel good, I feel fulfilled and happy on the field, both in the national team and at the club. I’m doing what I like most: goals and good performances.”
Messi was not in attendance to receive The Best trophy last week, with Arsenal legend Thierry Henry instead jokingly picking it up on the Argentine’s behalf. There was little surprise when he won the Ballon d’Or last October, with the award taking the 2022 World Cup into consideration.
Messi captained Argentina to winning the tournament in Qatar, scoring twice in the final against France. After being handed the trophy, the Inter Miami star paid tribute to his national side team-mates.
