'%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)
What's the story?
Multiple news outlets have published reports that make Cristiano Ronaldo the favourite to win this year's Ballon d'Or award.
Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport was one of the first sources to break the story, which stems from the Juventus man's recent interview with French magazine France Football, who hand out the award each year.
In case you didn't know...
This year, as usual, the Portuguese international is competing with Lionel Messi for the award, as both of them earned a record 11th nomination, while UEFA Champions League winner with Liverpool , Virgil van Dijk also has one of the strongest claims to the coveted trophy.
Ronaldo finished third at both the UEFA Men's Player of the Year awards and FIFA Men's World Player awards this year, the other two significant individual honors apart from the Ballon d'Or, which were awarded to Van Dijk and Messi respectively.
The heart of the matter...
According the Italian sports newspaper Corriere dello Sport, representatives from the magazine France Football, organizers of Ballon d'Or, were in Turin for an exclusive interview with the 34-year-old superstar.
He also appears on the cover of their recent edition. The report also claims that France Football dined with Ronaldo in Turin, with Juve's sporting director Fabio Patrici also present.
This out-of-the-blue effort from the French magazine to get in touch with the player is now strongly seen as a sign that the five-time winner will end up on the winner's podium this year as well.
Why Ronaldo deserves the honor ahead of Messi and Van Dijk
Ronaldo had a fabulous first year at the Allianz Stadium, he ended up being the top scorer for The Old Lady and was their only goalscorer in the knockout phases of the Champions League last season.
Alongside the Serie A title, he also lifted the Supercoppa Italiana and helped Portugal to glory at the maiden UEFA Nations League. It was his second trophy with his nation in three years. Earlier this year he was also recognized with the Marca legends award.
On an individual level too he had a great year, as he scored his 700th career goal for club and country recently and also broke the record for most goals scored at the UEFA Euro qualifiers.
While Messi was exceptional as usual with Barcelona, he faltered at the Copa America with Argentina. Individually he might boast better stats than his old adversary, but he failed to match his trophy count.
Van Dijk won the Champions League, but it should be remembered that the last time a defender was bestowed with the Ballon d'Or was in 2006 to Fabio Cannavaro, mainly attributed to his World Cup success and performances in Serie A for Juventus, whose 2006 title was scrapped due to the infamous Calciopoli scandal.
What's next?
Though Ronaldo, Messi and Van Dijk are expected to be the top three players at the Ballon d'Or gala this year, it remains to be seen which player takes home the golden ball.
Whether it will be a record sixth win for Messi or Ronaldo or Van Dijk winning the award against all odds, we will find out on December 2.
