Sports
Ballon d’Or: Messi’s message to Cristiano Ronaldo
<h4><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">Lionel Messi of Paris Saint-Germain has questioned Manchester United striker Cristiano Ronaldo&#8217;s ability to match his seven Ballon d&#8217;Or victories.</span></h4>
<p><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-14243" src="https://thedailypage.ng/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/messi-b.jpg" alt="Ballon d'Or award" width="640" height="473" /></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">Messi won the 2021 Ballon d&#8217; Or for a record seventh time on Monday night, defeating Bayern Munich&#8217;s Robert Lewandowski and Chelsea&#8217;s Jorginho.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">Ronaldo, Messi&#8217;s constant opponent and five-time winner of the Ballon d&#8217;Or, finished sixth this year.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">The Argentine captain, who has competed with Ronaldo throughout his career, now believes that no one can ever match his incredible seven Ballon d&#8217;Or awards.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">“I don’t know if the record [seven Ballon d’ Or awards] is beatable,” Messi said during a post-ceremony press conference.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">“I just have to accept it, but I am not sure if it can be beaten. Seven is really impressive.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">Meanwhile, Guillem Balague, a Spanish football specialist, concurred with Messi, claiming that no footballer has ever surpassed the former Barcelona captain in terms of Ballon d&#8217;Or medals earned.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 14pt;">&#8220;I don&#8217;t think so,&#8221; Balague said when asked if Ronaldo could now catch Messi.</span></p>