The Ballon d’Or is set to return this November after it was cancelled the last season due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Ballon d’Or is an annual football award, presented by French news magazine France football. 2021 Ballon d’Or is the upcoming 65th annual ceremony of the Ballon d’Or.
The winner of the prestigious award is decided by the performances of the player in the previous campaign. Football coaches, football journalists and national captains also cast their votes for the Ballon d’Or in a voting system. And combining these two processes a winner is decided for the most prestigious individual prize in football.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have dominated the Ballon d’Or in the past 12 years. Lionel Messi has won the award a record 6 times. While Cristiano Ronaldo has won 5 Ballon d’Or. Luka Modric in 2018 is the only player to have broken this inevitability of Ronaldo and Messi winning the Ballon d’Or. While Robert Lewandowski was the clear favourite to win the award in 2020 when it was cancelled.
Top 5 Rankings for Ballon d’Or 2021:
5. Cristiano Ronaldo- Manchester United and Portugal
In 2020/21: 38 goals, four assists. Won Coppa Italia & Supercoppa Italiana
Cristiano Ronaldo is now back at Manchester United and had a great September. He overtook Iran’s Ali Daei as the men’s leading international goalscorer of all time. And also won the Premier League player of the month for September.
Ronaldo won the golden boot at Euro 2020 where he recorded five goals and provided an assist in four appearances for Portugal. He also won the Serie A golden boot for Juventus last campaign, recording 29 goals in 33 league appearances.
Cristiano Ronaldo may struggle to take home his 6th Ballon d’Or. But will no doubt be in the top 5 contenders for the prestigious award.
4. N’ Golo Kante- Chelsea and France
In 2020/21: One goal, one assist. Won Champions League & UEFA Super Cup.
N’ Golo Kante was a key figure for Chelsea as they lifted the Champions League trophy for the second time in their history. Kante also lifted the UEFA Super Cup with Chelsea. Kante won four man of the match and he was named as the best midfielder in the Champions League season.
He didn’t have a great Euro 2020 as France lost to Switzerland in the Round of 16. He did play a big part in France’s Nations League triumph. But missed the final and semi-final due to injury. N’ Golo Kante is one of the favourites to life the trophy.
3. Robert Lewandowski- Bayern Munich and Poland
In 2020/21: 52 goals, eight assists. Won Bundesliga, Club World Cup and DFL-Supercup.
Robert Lewandowski who was the clear favourite to win the award last time is again one of the favourites to win the award this season too. Lewandowski had a fantastic season with Bayern Munich as they lifted the Bundesliga, Club World Cup and the DFL-Supercup. He also broke Gerard Muller’s record of most goals and finished the campaign with 41 goals in just 29 games.
He has scored already scored 13 goals in nine appearances in all competitions in the 2021-22 campaign. If he can keep this form going until November, there is a good chance he will win his much deserved Ballon d’Or.
2. Jorginho- Chelsea and Italy
In 2021: Five goals, two assists. Won Euro 2020, Champions League and UEFA Super Cup.
No player had such a wonderful and glorious season as Jorginho. Jorginho lifted the Champions League and UEFA Super Cup with Chelsea and won the Euro 2020 with Italy over the summer. He may have lost the UEFA Nations League but is still one of the clear favourites for the Ballon d’Or award.
Jorginho also won the UEFA Men’s Player of the year trophy after his heroics with both Chelsea and Italy. He also topped the charts for fouls drawn 18, interceptions 25 and recoveries 46 at Euro 2020. It is quite clear to see why Jorginho is one of the favourites for the award.
1. Lionel Messi- Paris Saint-Germain and Argentina
In 2020/21: 38 goals, 14 assists. Won Copa America & Copa del Rey.
Lionel Messi is leading the race and looks all set to win his seventh Ballon d’Or title. Messi had a fantastic 2020/21 campaign as led Barcelona to the Copa del Rey trophy beating Athletic Club in the final. He also won his eighth Pichichi trophy. He recorded 30 goals and set up a further 11 assists in 35 La Liga appearances.
Messi also led Argentina to the Copa America trophy ending a 28-year drought. He recorded four goals and provided five assists in the competition. He was later named the Copa America player of the tournament. Messi leads the rankings as the clear favourite for the Ballon d’Or.
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