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#1 Not many players can genuinely lay claim to have outperformed him last season
A name which has been mentioned more than others as the most deserving winner of the 2019 Ballon d'Or is that of Virgil van Dijk and rightly so, as the 26-year-old has been exceptional since arriving Liverpool.
However, while taking nothing away from his extreme importance to Liverpool's transformation, claims of his input are exaggerated and it could be argued that the signing of Alisson was more important in solving the Red's defensive woes than that of the Dutchman.
Moreover, for all of his displays, van Dijk has only the Champions League to show for his efforts. The final of the Nations League pitted him up against Ronaldo and gave him an opportunity to captain his side to the trophy.
For his part, Lionel Messi is the only player who has been on Ronaldo's level over the last decade and would always be in the running for personal awards.
Nevertheless, despite performing brilliantly throughout the campaign and winning a host of individual accolades, the Argentine legend came up short in the Champions League and Copa del Rey, having only La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup to show for his services this season.
This is the same as Ronaldo (who has an edge with an international trophy).Perhaps leading his side to Copa America glory in Brazil would strengthen Messi's claim for a sixth Ballon d'Or.
Elsewhere, there are not many players who can genuinely lay a strong claim to the award. Kylian Mbappe suffered heartbreak both in domestic cup competitions and in the Champions League, while he was powerless to stop France's no-show in the Nations League. The same can be said for Griezmann.
Eden Hazard did not star on the biggest stages, while Mane and Salah have only the Champions League trophy to show and might need to win the upcoming African Nations Cup to lay their marker.
Raheem Sterling was arguably the standout player in Manchester City's domestic conquest, but he also suffered continental pain, while also not stepping up on the international scene with England in the Nations League.
For Ronaldo not to win the 2019 Ballon d'Or, it means that there has to have been a player who significantly outperformed him across all competitions, but a holistic look around Europe would reveal that there are not too many players in this regard.
