"Bla Bla Bla.. carry on" - Lionel Messi's father appears to take swipe at Cristiano Ronaldo and critics after son's 7th Ballon d'Or win

Lionel Messi’s father Jorge Messi posted a sarcastic response to Cristiano Ronaldo and his fans after his son won a record seventh Ballon d’Or award on Monday.

In recent days, the two legends of the game have come as close as they have ever been to being involved in a row. They have always been respectful to each other, despite a heated rivalry during their La Liga days.

After Messi won his seventh Ballon d’Or, Ronaldo shared an Instagram post that questioned two decisions in the Ballon d’Or 2021 gala. Firstly, the post listed Ronaldo’s achievements over the past year to ridicule the decision to put him at sixth overall. Secondly, Messi’s achievements over the same period were questioned, despite the Argentinian’s superior goalscoring record than Ronaldo’s.

Now, Messi’s father Jorge has responded on Twitter by posting the following caption along with an image of his son with the Ballon d’Or award:

"Bla bla bla... carry on."

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Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi’s rivalry shows first signs of bitterness

Things appeared to turn sour between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi when the editor of France Football Pascal Ferre claimed that Ronaldo had confided in him that his only goal in the game was to win more Ballon d’Or titles than Messi.

Ronaldo, however, has hit back, saying that there is no truth to the claims, and the comments are disrespectful. He said:

"Pascal Ferré lied and used my name to promote himself and to promote the publication that he works for. It's unacceptable for the person responsible for handing out such a prestigious award to lie in this way and to show disrespect to someone who has always respected France Football and the Ballon d'Or. He lied again today to justify my absence from the ceremony due to an alleged quarantine that has no reason to exist."

Ronaldo then commented on an Instagram post that questioned the Ballon d’Or’s decision to place him sixth, despite scoring six Champions League goals to Messi’s three this season:

"3 goals in the year, 6 goals in 5 games in this Champions League, all decisive and a guy who, regardless of (his) age, continues to work miracles and is the guy who most impresses the world most often. They still put the guy in 6th."

The post questioned the perceived different benchmarks by France Football about his and Messi’s Ballon d’Or credentials.

"Do you really think that 5 guys did more than him in the year? Never. For Cristiano to win this prize, he has to be 300% unquestionable. It's no use scoring the most beautiful goal of the year, being champion of everything by club, top scorer of everything and scoring a hat-trick in the World Cup, they still provide a way to take his prize."

The post also talked about Messi’s low key start to the season - four goals in 11 games. But he still won the Ballon d’Or.

"With Messi, it's the other way around. He can do a low-key season, way below, they'll always find a way to favour him and give him the prize."

This is the first time either of the two legends even indirectly questioned each other’s achievements in the game.

Cristiano Ronaldo has put up impressive numbers this year, belying his years, despite his teams not always producing the desired results. Nevertheless, the Portuguese can be forgiven for wearing his heart on his sleeve, as he finds himself in unfamiliar territory.

This is the first time since 2010 that Cristiano Ronaldo did not finish in the top three of the Ballon d’Or rankings.