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The Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist has been released by French news magazine France Football. The Ballon d'Or will be presented to the best male and female footballers at an event that will take place on November 29th. The current list will be reduced to just three individuals as we edge closer to it.
Lionel Messi, Jorginho, Robert Lewandowski and Cristiano Ronaldo lead Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist
The 30-man shortlist for the 2021 Ballon d'Or is as follows:
Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City), N'Golo Kante (Chelsea), Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea), Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), Ruben Dias (Manchester City), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jorginho (Chelsea), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Simon Kjaer (AC Milan), Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich), Romelu Lukaku (Inter Milan), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan), Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain), Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain), Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Gerard Moreno (Villarreal), Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain), Pedri (Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid).
Lionel Messi is tipped to be the favourite to win the Ballon d'Or this year. The Argentine has been in excellent form in 2021. He scored 38 goals and provided 14 assists in 47 appearances for the Catalans in the 2020-21 season. Messi also played a starring role in their Copa Del Rey triumph.
But his crowning achievement was leading Argentina to glory in the 2021 Copa America. The 34-year-old scored four goals and provided five assists and was chosen as the Best Player at the continental competition.
Robert Lewandowski is another top contender. The Bayern Munich striker broke Gerd Muller's long-standing record of scoring the most goals in a Bundesliga season, by scoring 41 in 29 matches. He was a standout performer for the Bavarians as they won the Bundesliga title in the 2020-21 season.
Lewandowski scored three goals for Poland at Euro 2020 but their group stage exit would have done him no favours as far as the Ballon d'Or race is concerned. Chelsea and Italy midfielder Jorginho has had a glorious summer.
He played a key role for Chelsea as they won the UEFA Champions League title. Jorginho was a consistent performer for Italy as they were crowned champions of Europe in the summer. The 29-year-old would then go on to win the UEFA Super Cup as well, thereby completing a trophy haul that's unmatched this year.
He also won the UEFA Men's Player of the Year Award and is a serious contender for the Ballon d'Or this term. Other big names on the list include Cristiano Ronaldo, N'Golo Kante, Kevin De Bruyne and Kylian Mbappe.
Kante's performances in the Champions League were critical to Chelsea winning the title. Ronaldo won the Golden Boot in the 2020-21 Serie A season and at Euro 2020 as well. He only has the Coppa Italia in the trophy department and that is likely to hamper his chances in the race for the Ballon d'Or this time around.
Without further ado, let's take a look at how Twitter responded to the Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist.
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