With the completion of the summer tournaments at the weekend, the race for this year’s Ballon d’Or – after it’s cancellation last year due to Covid-19 – is hotting up.
Lionel Messi, despite an underwhelming season – by his standards – is the new favourite with the bookies after guiding Argentina to the Copa America title and breaking his international major tournament duck.
Yet it is far from a foregone conclusion, after a 2020-21 season full of standout performers across Europe – so who can stop Messi and who are the main men in the running for the 2021 Ballon d’Or?
Lionel Messi finally broke his international duck as Argentina claimed the 2021 Copa America
N’Golo Kante was the star man in Chelsea’s Champions League triumph (L) while club team-mate Jorginho also tasted international success with Italy at Euro 2020 (R)
LIONEL MESSI
But let’s start off with the Argentine superstar – and the new Ballon d’Or favourite.
It was always the one black mark against his name and against his status as an all-time great. Why, for all the glory experienced at Barcelona, could Messi not taste similar success with his country?
Well, no longer. At 34, his moment finally came. And he played a starring role throughout the tournament behind-closed-doors in Brazil.
Four goals in seven games, including a few sumptuous free-kicks, and he played a part (goals or assists) in nine of Argentina’s 12 goals in the tournament.
He scooped up all the individual prizes, including the player of the tournament and golden boot. But what mattered most was ending Argentina’s wait for a first major tournament since 1993.
The 34-year-old’s success with his country came after a difficult campaign with Barcelona
Messi finally has the monkey off his back. And despite an underwhelming season for Barcelona which included a last-16 exit from the Champions League and a late faltering in LaLiga, the glory in his home continent makes him the No 1 candidate for the world’s best player prize once again.
Will the six-time winner claim a seventh?
N’GOLO KANTE
Before the summer tournaments, it was hard to look beyond the dynamic midfielder for the Ballon d’Or.
Having been named man of the match in both semi-final legs and the final of Chelsea’s glorious run to the Champions League crown, Kante was a standout candidate.
His performances under Thomas Tuchel in the final months of the season were nothing short of outstanding – it was genuinely like the Blues had an extra man in the middle, such was the amount of effective work the Frenchman put in.
Kante was Chelsea’s star performer as they won the Champions League last season
Adding to his part in Leicester’s dream-like 2016 Premier League triumph and France’s 2018 World Cup winning-squad, Kante had one last prize to tick off.
But, to the shock of all, France faltered in the knockout-stages at Euro 2020, slumping to a last-16 exit on penalties to Switzerland. Not because of Kante, sure, but a shock nonetheless.
If France had tasted success again this summer, Kante would still be the No 1 contender. How much will it count against him?
Yet Kante was part of the France squad which surprisingly lost to Switzerland at Euro 2020
ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI
First things first – the goalscoring phenomenon is very much on the list due to his form for his club rather than his country.
Lewandowski endured another sensational season in front of goal for Bayern Munich, scoring 48 goals in 40 games in all competitions.
He overtook Raul to become the third highest-goalscorer in the history of the Champions League too and was unfortunate to be injured for the quarter-final defeat against PSG.
Robert Lewandowski won the Bundesliga and scored an astonishing 48 goals in 40 matches
Bayern won another Bundesliga, their ninth in a row. But, in group including Spain, Slovakia and Sweden, Poland finished rock bottom.
Lewandowski, to his credit, scored three in three. Yet his stark failure in the summer’s major tournament is likely to count against last year’s UEFA Player of the Year.
CRISTIANO RONALDO
Not his best season by any stretch of the imagination, but the world superstar still shone individually.
Despite Juventus relinquishing their Serie A crown, Ronaldo finished the league’s top scorer with 29 goals, including some crucial strikes towards the end of the season as Juve claimed a top-four spot which seemed lost at one point.
He also won the Coppa Italia, another major trophy to the collection.
Cristiano Ronaldo claimed two top-scorer prizes and won the Coppa Italia with Juventus
Then, as he led Portugal in their defence of their European Championship crown, Ronaldo stood out in the group-stage.
He scored five goals, scoring in every group-match in the supposed group of death with France, Germany and Hungary.
Yet, ultimately, it ended in disappointment against Belgium in the last-16. Nevertheless, Ronaldo won the golden boot, beating Patrik Schick by virtue of an assist. Another individual prize scooped for the 36-year-old.
The Portugal skipper scored five goals at Euro 2020 and finished as the Golden Boot winner
KEVIN DE BRUYNE
The playmaker was, once again, glorious for Manchester City last season as they won the Premier League at a canter.
De Bruyne played a key role in a free-flowing City midfield, scoring 10 goals and registering 18 assists in all competitions as he won the PFA Player of the Year.
Kevin De Bruyne won the Premier League title and was also named PFA Player of the Year
However, his season did end in heartbreak, as he was forced off in the final of the Champions League with a nasty eye injury following a collision with Antonio Rudiger.
It meant he was late to the Belgian party at Euro 2020. And even then, he couldn’t stop his country going out to eventual winners Italy in the quarter-finals.
He could have won it all – and if he did he’d be a top contender. As it is, De Bruyne is an outside bet.
Yet his season ended in disappointment as Belgium were knocked-out of Euro 2020 by Italy
JORGINHO
The Chelsea man became the tenth person to win the Champions League and European Championship double in the same season, a feat matched by team-mate Emerson.
Jorginho, following Italy’s triumph at Wembley on Sunday, did not mince his words either: “No one has won more than me this year.
‘If the strongest has to win it’s not me. If the most successful has to win, it’s finally up to me.’
Jorginho won Euro 2020 with Italy a matter of weeks after claiming the Champions League
He may well be disappointed though. History shows that the most successful player in terms of trophies is often not the winner of the Ballon d’Or.
For example, not since Fabio Cannavaro in 2006 has a World Cup winner also won the football’s most illustrious individual prize in the same year.
An incredible few months no doubt, and his odds have been slashed. But it’d take some quite incredible voting for the midfielder to be No 1 when the ceremony is likely to be held this December.