'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Former Brazilian midfielder Kaka has named the player who missed out on the Ballon d’Or during Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi's dominance. Ronaldo and Messi completely dominated modern football for nearly two decades, winning 13 Ballon d'Ors between them.
Kaka received the prestigious individual award in 2007, before the duopoly of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi began. Ronaldo won his first Ballon d’Or in 2008, while Messi claimed the coveted award in 2009.
During Ronaldo and Messi's era, players like Robert Lewandowski, Frank Ribery, Erling Haaland, and Virgil van Dijk all missed out on the Ballon d’Or. However, Kaka believes his compatriot Neymar was the best player to have missed out on the individual award during the reign of the two GOATs. He told SPORTbible:
Trending
"It’s hard to say deserved, but I would say Neymar. In certain periods of his career, he was performing as the best player in the world, but to win the Ballon d’Or and individual awards, you have to be the protagonist in a collective tournament."
Kaka insisted that Neymar might have won the Ballon d'Or in 2020 if Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) had defeated Bayern Munich in the Champions League final. He added:
“This was something that meant he missed out. If PSG had won the Champions League in 2020 against Bayern Munich, Neymar probably would’ve been nominated as the best player in the world in that year. But in my opinion, he was performing as the best [player].”
Neymar was widely regarded as the heir to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi's throne from a very young age. While he had a successful career with clubs like Santos, Barcelona, and PSG, he never quite managed to challenge the two greats of modern football in terms of overall output.
The Brazilian scored 106 goals and provided 76 assists in 186 appearances for Barcelona, winning eight trophies. He made 173 appearances for PSG after leaving Barca, scoring 118 goals and contributing 79 assists, while winning 13 trophies.
When Kaka picked between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
Former Real Madrid midfielder Kaka chose Lionel Messi as the GOAT (Greatest of all time) over his eternal rival, Cristiano Ronaldo. Although Kaka played alongside Ronaldo as a teammate at Real Madrid, he praised Lionel Messi as a genius. The ex-AC Milan midfielder said, as quoted by BeINSports:
"I played with Cristiano and he's really amazing, but I'll go with Messi. He's a genius, a pure talent. The way he plays is incredible."
Kaka also spoke highly of Cristiano Ronaldo, calling him a 'machine' and praising his mentality. He stated:
"Cristiano is a machine. It's not just the way he's strong, powerful and fast; he's strong mentally. He always wants to win and play. To be the best. For me, that's the most incredible thing he has."
He listed the two players among the five greatest footballers of all time. He concluded:
"In the history of sport. they (Messi and Cristiano) are definitely in the top five. We are very lucky to have been able to see both of them."
Kaka shared the pitch with Cristiano Ronaldo on 99 occasions at Real Madrid, contributing to 21 joint goal participations. In contrast, he faced Lionel Messi 12 times for club and country, winning four times, drawing four times, and losing four times.
