FIFA Ballon d’Or Shortlist Announced: Utterly Predictable, Probably Right

Chris Wright

5th, December 2011

15 Comments

By Chris Wright

FIFA have announced their three-man Ballon d’Or shortlist this morning, and it’s crushingly predictable fare: Lionel Messi (the 5th time he’s made the ‘final three’ in five years), Xavi (3rd time in 3 years) and Cristiano Ronaldo (4th time in five years).

L’il Leo is actually the only man to have won the current incarnation of the Ballon d’Or after France Football’s top prize was merged with FIFA’s Player of the Year Award last year, and you have to fancy that after scoring 53 goals in all competitions last season (a feat matched by Ronaldo, we should add), the Barca man is the overwhelming favourite.

Seeing as FIFA aren’t the kind of organisation that specialise in ‘spontaneous’ curveballs unless vast amounts of Russian/Qatari petro-dollars are involved, so we’re slinging our balls out of the bath and plumping for a Messi win. I know, I know, we’re crazy.

Elsewhere, Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson are shortlisted for the 2011 FIFA Coach of the Year award. I’m seeing a two-way duel between Pep and Sir Alex here, given the former would be a nailed-on winner had the latter not celebrated a huge anniversary recently.

All the winners (along with the Puskas Award for the goal of the year) will be announced at an overblown ceremony in Zurich on January 9th.

Any thoughts folks?

Posted in Barcelona, Man Utd, Real Madrid

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15 Comments

  1. Dave says:

    I personally thought Ronaldo was the standout performer last year. Yeah Messi won everything and was incredible, but Ronaldo was a bit more special for me. Messi to win no doubt though.

  2. Gilberto says:

    Mourinho for Coach of the year…CR7 for Ballon D’Or

  3. fafaf says:

    They messed up by not giving it to Sneijder last year.

  4. Si says:

    Dave and Gilberto – unless your comments are steeped in irony, you both require serious medical attention. Not only did Messi equal Ronaldo in the scoring stakes, he also set up considerably more and across the board, his stats last season put CR7 to shame.

    As for coach of the year, Mourinho achieved nothing last year apart from securing a consolation cup. Granted, this season Real look unstoppable, but last season it was all Barca.

  5. er says:

    Why is Mourinho in the top 3 ? Seriously ?

  6. pooky says:

    @er: He took the biggest bunch of squabbling, overpaid underachievers in football and gelled them into a cohesive unit that were second only to Barca last season and ahead of them this. And who would you swap for him?

  7. Jack Wheeler says:

    Ronaldo surely has to take it? More goals scored in La Liga last season than ever before? And Pep should get manager

  8. dc says:

    Jack, why are goals viewed as superior? This award is for a superior player, not a superior penalty taker…..

    Furthermore, Messi equalled Ronaldo in goals last year, and scored MORE goals in the Champions league, where it is significantly harder to score goals than in La Liga. More assists all season too. More trophies. Less penalty goals. No brainer.

  9. UnitedYank says:

    Messi is great. Ronaldo is unbelievable.

    Messi has a better team, and better/smarter players around him. Makes it easier to score, provide assists, etc.

    Yes, Ronaldo did take a lot of penalties, but you still have to score them.

  10. fafaf says:

    Ronaldo gets flack for taking penalties, but Messi does as well.

  11. fafaf says:

    Just give it to Xavi to stop the squabbling.

  12. tom says:

    oscar tabarez for coach of the year? hard to disagree with the selections though

  13. fouldsy says:

    its a strange affair. england seems to have the best league in the world (i.e. anything can happen, such as the stop 4 changing into as a top 6/7, compaired to spains top 2 and italys top who cares). and yet, the majority of our players arent world class superstars. they just wanna play football. i watched a kinda MOTD type thing when i was in spain recently. the only 2 staiums that i saw full where barca’s and real’s. the rest was the kinda stuff you’d get in league one here. fuck seria a, and fuck la liga bbva!

  14. Jezza says:

    @fafaf if you give it to Xavi he will just pass it to Messi

  15. Anonymous says:

    The award should be given to C.Ronaldo ! He is simply brilliant …so is Messi and i respect him…But CR7 was, is and always will be the best ! End of .

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