Lewandowski and Jorginho complete the podium
“France Football should give Lewandowski the 2020 Ballon d’Or, he was just the winner”
MADRID, 29 Nov. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Argentine Leo Messi has conquered this Monday, ahead of the Polish Robert Lewandowski and the Italian Jorginho, his seventh Ballon d’Or as the best footballer of the year, which strengthens him as the most awarded footballer in the history of the award, which has been delivered by the magazine France Football at the Châtelet theater in Paris.
In this way, the former FC Barcelona player, now in the ranks of Paris Saint-Germain, revalidates the trophy he already received in 2019, the last year that the awards were given before the suspension in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, and adds the seventh to his collection (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019).
The conquest of the Copa América -after three lost finals with the albiceleste- has been his best guarantee in an irregular season, the last with the Barça shirt and in which despite everything he was Pichichi of LaLiga Santander and champion of the Cup King.
“It is incredible to be here again. Two years ago I said that it was my last years, that I did not know what was going to happen, and now I have to be here again. After that they began to ask me when I was going to retire and today I have to be in Paris. I am very happy and very excited, eager to continue fighting for new challenges. I don’t know how much I have left, but I hope a lot, because I love this, “he said after collecting his award.
In addition, he thanked his “teammates from Barcelona and Paris” for the award, and, “especially”, to the coaching staff and teammates of the Argentine team. “Other times I had to win this award and I always had the feeling that something was missing, that I had a thorn in my side, and this year I was able to achieve the dream I wanted so much after having fought and having had many stumbles. This award is largely because of what we did in the Copa América, “he said, before remembering his wife, his children, his brothers, his parents, his nephews and his brothers-in-law, present at the gala.
On the other hand, he had a special mention for the Polish Robert Lewandowski, champion of the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich and current Golden Boot, who finished second in the voting and also raised the award for the Scorer of the Year. “I want to tell Robert that it is an honor for me to fight him. You deserve your Ballon d’Or. Last year everyone agreed that you were the winner. I think France Football should give you your Ballon d’Or and have it as You deserved it. Hopefully France Football can give it to you and have it in your house, because you were just the winner. You have to have it in your house, “he said.
The podium was completed by the Italian Jorginho (Chelsea), who crowned his spectacular 2021 with a third place, in which he won the European Championship and the Champions League.
In the ‘Top 10’ they finished the Frenchman of Real Madrid Karim Benzema, fourth; Frenchman N’Golo Kanté (Chelsea), fifth; Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), sixth; the Egyptian Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), seventh; Belgian Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), eighth; Frenchman Kylian Mbappé (Paris Saint-Germain), ninth; and the Italian Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain), tenth.
Outside the top ten were the Norwegian Edin Haaland (Borussia Dortmund), eleventh, the Brazilian of PSG Neymar, sixteenth, or the Uruguayan striker of Atlético de Madrid, Luis Suárez, who finished seventeenth.
Regarding the Spanish representation among the 30 nominees, FC Barcelona striker Pedro González ‘Pedri’ was the best classified, twenty-fourth, while Villarreal striker Gerard Moreno finished twenty-sixth – tied with Inter player Nicolò Barella and Manchester City’s Ruben Dias- and Chelsea defender César Azpilicueta, twenty-ninth along with Real Madrid’s Croatian Luka Modric.
DONNARUMMA CONQUERS THE YASHIN TROPHY
For his part, the Italian Gianluigi Donnarumma won the Yashin Trophy, which highlights the best goalkeeper of the year, for his conquest of the European Championship in the summer in which he left AC Milan for Paris Saint-Germain, winning the vote for LaLiga Santander goalkeepers such as Real Madrid’s Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and Atlético de Madrid’s Slovenian Jan Oblak.
“Thanks to my teammates and my former Milan teammates, they all helped me to be better,” he said. “Winning the European Championship with Italy was incredible, I have no words to describe all that. I want to thank my family and all the people who have made it possible for me to get this award,” he said.
In addition to the Goalscorer of the Year award, which recognized Robert Lewandowski, the award was also given to the best Team of the Year, which was received by English Chelsea for the conquest of the Champions League.