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Messi and Ronaldo Ballon d'Or duopoly has finally ended. Luka Modric won the Ballon d'Or award on Monday after a scintillating 2018. The Croatian international lifted the UEFA Champions League title with Real Madrid and took his national team to the finals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Ever since Kaka won the award in 2007, Messi and Ronaldo dominated the Ballon d'Or awards for a decade. It needed a special player to break their dominance and Luka Modric indeed had a special season for Real Madrid and Croatia. Cristiano Ronaldo and Antoine Griezmann finished second and third respectively while the five-time winner, Lionel Messi, finished in the fifth place.
Neymar and Luis Suarez failed to make it to the top 10 as the duo finished 12th and 13th respectively. World Cup winner, Paul Poga, finished 15th while Gareth Bale ended up at 17th. Four Premier League players finished in the top 10.
On that note, let's take a look at the five Players who did not deserve their ranking in the 2018 Ballon d'Or awards.
#5 Thibaut Courtois, Real Madrid & Belgium
The former Chelsea and Atletico Madrid shot-stopper finished 14th in the 2018 Ballon d'Or rankings. The winner of the Golden Glove award during the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Thibaut Courtois is the highest ranked goalkeeper in the Ballon d'Or awards for 2018. Is he the best goalkeeper in the world right now? Stats say otherwise.
Chelsea finished sixth in the Premier League last season and Courtois conceded 34 goals in the Premier League. He was also not at his best for Real Madrid this season. Though De Gea has made a couple of glaring errors in the World Cup, he certainly was a lot better than the Belgian international last season. Hugo Lloris was brilliant for France and Tottenham Hotspur while Alisson Becker was exceptional for Brazil and AS Roma. After all, Courtois' 14th place finish is a debatable one.
#4 Paul Pogba, Manchester United and France
Paul Pogba finished 15th in the 2018 Ballon d'Or awards. The Frenchman scored six goals and created 10 more for Manchester United in the Premier League last season. Though he was good, he wasn't at his very best. He was inconsistent on occasions and failed to hit his peak.
Manchester United finished without a single trophy last season and Pogba was not able to inspire his side. They were nowhere close to Manchester City in the Premier League and never had any chance in the UEFA Champions League.
However, the 25-year-old was a key figure in France's World Cup win in Russia during the summer. He scored a goal in the tournament and produced some solid performances in the midfield. However, one may feel that he does not deserve to finish ahead of Ivan Rakitic in the 2018 Ballon d'Or.
#3 Gareth Bale, Real Madrid & Wales
Another Real Madrid player features in the top 30 and it is none other than the flying Welshman, Gareth Bale. The 29-year-old won his fourth UEFA Champions League title with Real Madrid last season.
Gareth Bale made only 20 starts in La Liga last season and three in the UEFA Champions League. He scored 21 goals for Real Madrid last season but missed a good chunk of the campaign because of injuries.
Also, he was not able to inspire Wales as they failed to qualify for the World Cup in Russia. Though he is still one of the best forwards in world football, a 17th place finish raises a lot of questions. For a player who played no part in the World Cup and made just three starts in the Champions League, he should consider himself lucky to be in the top 20.
#2 Antoine Griezmann, Atletico Madrid & France
It may seem harsh to many but Antoine Griezmann above Lionel Messi and Mo Salah in the final 2018 Ballon d'Or rankings do not seem a fair decision. Though France won the 2018 World Cup, Atletico Madrid finished second in La Liga. Diego Simeone's side was dismal in the 2017/18 UEFA Champions League and got themselves knocked out of the tournament in the group stages.
The 27-year-old's sixth-place finish in The 2018 Best FIFA Men's Player awards made a lot of sense, but, a third-place finish in the 2018 Ballon d'Or awards needs a lot of explanation. Though he has scored 19 goals in La Liga, two in the UEFA Champions League, and four in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, the Frenchman definitely did not deserve a place in the podium.
#1 Karim Benzema, Real Madrid
The Real Madrid striker finished 17th in the 2018 Ballon d'Or awards. Karim Benzema was ignored by Didier Descamps for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia and the Frenchman scored only 12 goals for Real Madrid last season, five in the 2017/18 La Liga, two in the cup competitions, and five in the UEFA Champions League.
The 30-year-old wasn't at his best during the 2017/18 campaign and was outscored by many strikers in Spain and Europe. He played second-fiddle to Cristiano Ronaldo and was below-par is many outings.
Forwards like Roberto Firmino, Edinson Cavani, Sadio Mane, Mario Mandzukic, and Robert Lewandowski were far better than Karim Benzema last season and might consider themselves unlucky to feature below the Real Madrid star. Though Benzema has won the UEFA Champions League with Real Madrid, he hasn't done enough to deserve a 17th place finish.
