Lionel Messi won the 2018 Ballon d’Or, but underperforming in La Liga
The “ballon d’or 2020” is the award that Lionel Messi has won for the 3rd time. The award will be given to a player who is considered to have been underwhelming in their performance during the year.
The Ballon d’Or is the world’s most prestigious award for football players. This year’s winner was Lionel Messi, but more on that in a moment.
The award, which is given out by a group of football writers, is a mark of distinction and a source of pride for any player who receives it. In the past decade or so, two names have dominated it: Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Luka Modric was the only player who has won it since 2008 who is neither Messi or Ronaldo. The award has, however, sparked debate on several occasions, the most recent example being the postponement of the 2020 edition due to COVID-19, when many thought Robert Lewandowski should have won.
Lionel Messi won the prize for the record-breaking seventh time this year. This iteration was not without its detractors, with many believing that the Argentinian did not deserve to win. Here are three reasons why Lionel Messi did not deserve to win the Ballon d’Or.
The Lionel Messi Ballon d’Or Scandal
Success as a group
By his own standards, Lionel Messi has enjoyed a fantastic season. With 30 goals in 35 games in La Liga, he was named the league’s leading goal scorer. He also scored 38 goals in all competitions last season, which is a fantastic total. However, it has been overshadowed by his team’s dismal performance. Barcelona finished in third place overall in La Liga, seven points behind champions Atletico Madrid and five points behind arch-rivals Real Madrid.
Barcelona finished second in their Champions League group behind Juventus. They were, however, humiliated by PSG in the knockout round. At the Camp Nou, where Juventus won the last game of the group 3-0, the French squad triumphed 4-1 behind a hat-trick by Kylian Mbappe. Messi scored two goals in the return leg in Paris, one a screamer, but it wasn’t enough to get his club across the finish line.
Of course, Messi finally added one of the two trophies that had eluded him throughout his career. He guided Argentina to a Copa America victory, leaving Messi with just the World Cup to win on an international level. However, while being a difficult prize to win, the Copa America is sometimes eclipsed by other continental events, like as the EURO. Messi also won the Copa Del Rey with Barcelona, defeating Athletic Bilbao 4-0 in the final.
In large-scale games, performance
Much of Messi’s criticism in the last years of his career was directed at his performances in pivotal games. Many detractors claimed that he stat-padded against weaker teams while being absent from the major games. Due to his capacity to alter matches with a single sequence of play, a player of Messi’s talent cannot be taken out of any game. This holds true for last season as well.
In all, Lionel Messi scored 30 goals for Barcelona during his final La Liga season. Messi, on the other hand, scored four goals in ten games against Spain’s top six teams. That includes a goalless draw in two El Clasicos, which are regarded as the most important games in the world. Three of the four came against Real Betis, who finished sixth, while the fourth came against Sevilla. In the Champions League, he scored five goals, four of which were penalty kicks. One occurred in the 91st minute against Juventus in the group stage, sealing a 2-0 victory away from home.
Three of his four goals in the Copa America came in the tournament’s group stage. He scored two against a poor Bolivia team and one in the knockouts against Ecuador in the 93rd minute to complete a 3-0 victory. He did not score in the semi-final or final, with Angel Di Maria scoring the game-winning goal against Brazil. While Messi can influence the game in a variety of ways, narratives after several major matches were replete with criticism of his performance.
Other players can be persuaded with vehement arguments.
It’s tough to see how Messi’s argument is better in a season when Jorginho guided a Chelsea midfield to a Champions League winners medal and Italy to victory in the Euros. The Italian midfielder isn’t as flamboyant as some of his teammates, and he doesn’t score much, but that isn’t his purpose. On the field, his job was to fortify the middle and keep the squad balanced, which he achieved well. It’s even more astonishing when you remember that under Frank Lampard, Chelsea’s team was in tatters at the start of the season and yet won the Champions League at the end.
Robert Lewandowski is another name with a strong case. The Polish striker was denied a Ballon d’Or in 2020 owing to the event’s cancellation. While it would be unjust for him to win it only on that basis, he had a fantastic season with Bayern Munich. Although Messi won the Copa America and Poland was eliminated in the group stage, it would be incorrect to compare the quality of these two events and the national teams they represent.
Lewandowski scored an incredible 48 goals in total, including 41 in the Bundesliga, breaking the record for most goals scored in a single season in the German league, which was previously held by German icon Gerd Muller. Granted, he doesn’t have the same influence on the game as Lionel Messi, but this goal tally is fantastic, and Lewandowski has every right to be disappointed with the final result.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much Ballon dOr has Messi won?
A: Lionel Messi has won a total of 23 Ballon dOr awards.
What age did Messi win Ballon d Or?
A: Messi was 24 when he won the Ballon dOr in 2005.
Who won the Ballon dOr 2021?
A: Cristiano Ronaldo.
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