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The Ballon d'Or 2021 award will be announced on November 29 in Paris. Last month, the 30-man shortlist for the prestigious award was announced by France Football.
Lionel Messi, the seven-time winner of the award and current holder, headlines the list alongside his long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo. The duo has the most appearances in the Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlists. But many are questioning whether either of the two has a good shot at the glistening trophy this year.
The cases for Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to win the Ballon d'Or 2021
Lionel Messi lifted his first international trophy with Argentina this summer, and left Barcelona with a record-extending eighth Pichichi trophy. He was the best player in Copa America 2021, where he also won the Golden Ball and Golden Boot awards. He won the Copa del Rey with Barcelona in the 2020-21 campaign, and his international trophy could sway votes his way.
Cristiano Ronaldo was the top-scorer in yet another league last season, as he finished with 29 goals in the 2020-21 Serie A campaign. The two trophies he won with Juventus were domestic cups, so his claim for the Ballon d'Or award this year is not as strong as Messi's.
Messi has been backed by the likes of Gary Lineker and Luis Suarez to lift the award. Meanwhile, Ronaldo has the backing of Sir Alex Ferguson. However, there are quite a few icons of the game who will cast their vote for the 2021 Ballon d'Or award to someone not named Messi or Ronaldo.
On that note, here's a look at five legendary players who are not backing Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi to win the Ballon d'Or 2021 award.
#5 Hristo Stoichkov - Robert Lewandowski
Who better than a former winner of the Ballon d'Or award to share his two cents on the deserving candidate for this year's award? Former Barcelona star Hristo Stoichov, the 1994 winner of the award, does not believe that Messi or Ronaldo should lift the trophy this year.
The Bulgarian's pick for the award is Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski. Not a lot of people will disagree with his opinion, given the exploits in front of goal for the Polish striker this year. Speaking with TMW earlier this month, Stoichkov said:
"Jorginho? He has a chance to win this year for what he did with Chelsea and the national team. But it doesn't depend on me, but on the journalists. I would vote for a player who has not done just one year, but 4-5 years at a high level. If he also won the Nations League and the World Cup I would give it to him. For me, however, (Robert) Lewandowski would deserve it."
#4 Rivaldo - Mohamed Salah
Another Ballon d'Or winner, Rivaldo, believes neither Messi nor Ronaldo are in contention to win the coveted award this year. The 1999 winner of the award has been very impressed by Mohamed Salah's displays this year. Rivaldo believes the Egyptian is one of the best players in the world at the moment.
Salah has been on fire this season. He has scored two incredible solo goals in the Premier League this season, and is already up to double digits across competitions.
Rivaldo only had kind words for the Egyptian winger, explaining why Salah deserves the Ballon d'Or award this year, in his Betfair column:
“He's one of the best players in the world right now because his astonishing numbers in terms of goals and assists are obtained in the Premier League and Champions League, two of the most difficult competitions in the planet.
“When you are so good in demanding conditions, then of course you are a top player who deserves to be among the contenders for the Ballon d'Or this season.”
#3 Patrice Evra - N'Golo Kante or Jorginho
Patrice Evra was a great player for Manchester United. Though he did not come close to making the podium for the Ballon d'Or award, he played with a couple of winners. So he knows a thing or two about what it takes to win the coveted prize.
He is admittedly sick of watching Lionel Messi lift the award, and he does not believe the 34-year-old star has done enough to deserve the honour this year. Chelsea stars N'Golo Kante and Jorginho are higher in the pecking order than Messi, in his opinion. Evra said:
"I totally disagree. Because, in my opinion, this Ballon d'Or is for (N'Golo) Kante or Jorginho, they deserve it! I do not understand why people say 'He's just a midfielder', he won everything! Participating a lot in these triumphs."
"In my opinion, it's an injustice (if Jorginho does not win it). I'm sick of giving it to (Lionel) Messi. What did he win last year? Ok, the Copa America, but with Barcelona, what did he do? Last year, Jorginho also won trophies that didn't exist, so for me it's an absolute injustice (if he does not win it)."
#2 Ronaldo Nazario - Karim Benzema
Ronaldo Nazario was arguably the best player on the planet at the turn of the century. His performances for Real Madrid and Brazil took the world by storm.
He won the Ballon d'Or award twice, in 1997 as a 21-year-old, and in 2002 after helping Brazil to FIFA World Cup glory that year. He has backed Karim Benzema for the award this year, as he was in the same position as the French striker.
Ronaldo knows it is not an easy task to score 20+ goals in consecutive seasons. He said:
"Without a doubt, my candidate for the Ballon d'Or is Benzema. The best forward in the world, (an) incredibly high level for 10 years and a champion above all. Worthy of the award, don't you think?"
#1 Zinedine Zidane - Karim Benzema
Zinedine Zidane has a special place in world football, as he established himself as a highly successful coach after a very successful playing career. He won every major trophy with club and country.
Real Madrid have a special significance for him. So for this year's Ballon d'Or award, he has backed his younger compatriot Karim Benzema to win the award over Cristiano Ronaldo. The latter played a key role under Zidane in three back-to-back Champions League titles.
Zinedine Zidane praised Karim Benzema, in an interview with Telefoot, saying that the Real Madrid striker is a great all-round player:
"Benzema deserves to win this Ballon d'Or," said Zidane. "He is an incredible player, I had the great honour of coaching him. He can do everything on the pitch. He is on top, and I hope that he could be awarded the Ballon d'Or."
