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Last night's Ballon d'Or ceremony saw PSG and Argentina superstar Lionel Messi win the prestigious men's award for a record seventh time. He did so by beating the likes of Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski and Chelsea's Jorginho, among others.
While Lewandowski was undeniably the favorite to win last year's award and performed spectacularly this year as well, Lionel Messi's historic Copa America victory with Argentina could have tilted the scales in his favor.
The Bayern Munich superstar was awarded a consolatory prize in the form of the Striker of the Year award, but he will certainly rue finishing second to Lionel Messi. Notably, Robert Lewandowski has had an exemplary year, smashing Gerd Muller's long-standing Bundesliga goalscoring record. He scored 41 goals in the league and subsequently won the European Golden Shoe.
Chelsea's Jorginho has also had an exceptional year, winning the UEFA Champions League with the Blues and UEFA Euro 2020 with Italy.
However, it was Lionel Messi who ultimately took home world football's most coveted individual prize. While he may not have had the most prolific season by his own lofty standards, Messi did drag Barcelona along single-handedly in the first half of the year before winning Argentina's first major trophy since 1993. The second half of the year hasn't been quite as memorable for him, having struggled since his move to PSG. However, although Messi may have scored just 4 goals in 11 appearances across competitions this season, PSG look like they could comfortably win the Ligue 1 title this season.
This 7th Ballon d'Or now puts Lionel Messi two clear of his ultimate rival Cristiano Ronaldo, and many echelons clear of everyone else.
After winning the award last night, a relieved and elated Lionel Messi spoke about his win, his move to PSG as well as what the award means to him and his family.
"It was indeed a special year for me and of course it helped me in my new stage, in this new stage in my life. This move to PSG."
"And concerning my family, my kids, well, yes, I know that they do really enjoy the moments and I enjoyed to see them happy. And so do I enjoy seeing my parents, my cousins, my brothers also happy to see me win this trophy again."
Lionel Messi also acknowledged Robert Lewandowski's efforts and said:
"Well, it was indeed a great year for him (Robert Lewandowski). He is a classy striker and an amazing goalscorer. He finished the best scorer of the season. Maybe he will win the trophy next year, especially being in such a good club."
The historic moment naturally set social media abuzz with people from all over the world reacting to the news. Without further ado, here are some of the
Best reactions as Lionel Messi wins historic 7th Ballon d'Or award
