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What is the story?
Former Manchester United manager José Mourinho has revealed his reasoning of why Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi shouldn’t be crowned as the best player in the world this year.
According to the former Real Madrid manager, the best player in the world has to be a “winner” and by uttering the word winner, he meant Champions League glory.
In case you didn’t know….
Despite having a stellar season in terms of personal achievements, Lionel Messi of Barcelona ended the campaign with a sour taste in his mouth. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner failed to inspire Barcelona to another treble, as the Catalan giants endured a horrid business half of the season.
Messi and co. witnessed one of their worst nights in European football, as Liverpool masterminded a comeback at Anfield after trailing 3-0 from the first leg. The Catalan giants also failed to secure a domestic double, having secured the La Liga title on the month of April, they succumbed to defeat against Valencia in the final of Copa del Rey.
Meanwhile, Juventus and Cristiano Ronaldo may have managed to secure their Serie A title easily, but failure in both Champions League and Copa Italia somewhat ruined their campaign. Despite scoring 28 times in his first ever season in Italy, Ronaldo’s run in the Champions League ended in the quarter-final stage as Juventus suffered a shocking exit in the hands of Ajax.
The heart of the matter…
Speaking to Eleven Sports Portugal, the Portuguese manager has discussed the criteria of wining the Ballon d’Or.
"The best player in the world has to be a winner," he said as quoted by Marca.
“If Juventus had won the Champions League we would say that Ronaldo will win the Ballon d'Or.”
"If Barcelona had won the Champions League, having already won LaLiga Santander, and if he were to win the Copa America then the prize would be for Lionel Messi,” he added.
What’s Next?
Ronaldo will face Switzerland next in the semi-finals of UEFA Nations League for Portugal on the 5th of June. Meanwhile, Messi is gearing up to play for Argentina in the upcoming Copa America in Brazil.
