Messi… Haaland… Mbappé…? One of the three was going to go on stage at the Chatelet Theater in Paris to receive the 2023 Ballon d’Or, the other two would applaud him with a forced half smile from the front row. If Haaland or Mbappé won it it would have been a baptismal distinction, if Messi obtained it he would establish a record that may last a hundred years: 8 trophies. EIGHT…!
(You may be interested: Liverpool wins, scores and dedicates the victory to Luis Díaz)
Crazy. So it was. Leo raised the precious, golden object once again. The record is so enormous that Messi, alone, has more Ballon d’Ors than the eight most important football countries (except Argentina): Germany, France, Portugal and Holland have 7 each, England and Brazil 5, Italy 4, Spain 1. Example: Germany won their 7 through Beckenbauer 2, Rummenigge 2, Gerd Müller 1, Matthäus 1 and Matthias Sammer 1. France with Platini 3, Raymond Kopa 1, Jean-Pierre Papin 1, Zidane 1, Benzema 1. Like this everyone else.
It is very curious: football is a collective sport in which the individual fascinates. We worship the scorer, we are interested in knowing who the figure on the field was, we constantly look for the superhero. And the Ballon d’Or is the exaltation of individuality, a title of nobility for life. One says “Ruud Gullit, Ballon d’Or 1987”, “Hristo Stoichkov, Ballon d’Or 1994”… They should almost include it on their business cards. Messi would need letter size cards.
This appointment generates as much expectation as the Champions League final. For this reason, it is fodder for controversy, whether so-and-so deserves it or was given it as a gift, whether it is sporting justice or pure marketing. First, some clarifications are worth: the award does not reward the calendar year but the European season, in this case, the performance of the footballers between August 1, 2022 and July 31, 2023. What merits are taken into account… ? This is what the regulations say: “The Ballon d’Or is awarded based on three main criteria: 1. Individual performance and decisive and impactful character. 2. Collective performances and achievements. 3. Class and fair play.” Who chooses…? There are two aspects: one, the 100 journalists from around the world consulted by France Football; another, digital voting in which Internet users from all over the planet can participate. In both, Messi won widely.
The three candidates largely met the three requirements, although there are nuances, of course. And there were no surprises even in the order: 1) Leo, 2) Haaland, 3) Mbappé.
Mbappé was the first to be discarded: he scored 51 goals in that period (between PSG and the national team), but won only one title: French champion, although he was declared the best of the tournament. He adds shine to his record by having reached the World Cup final in Qatar and being the top scorer of the championship. One word defines his football: power. He is a cheetah. He is possibly the most physically powerful footballer in history among the greats. He is a combination of equal parts strength, speed and agility. They are his tools for scoring goals. If he throws it long, he’s gone, no one can match his line. The secret to marking it is to get over it and anticipate it. He is a net breaker without being from the area, he starts from behind, from the left point, makes the diagonal and looks for the three sticks. He also does not have a refined technique, in one-on-one he wins by speed, not by talent or deception, and many times, due to his own vertigo, promising plays get dirty or ruined. He is very strong in the head. He has the soul of number one and prepares for it. He learns, he has perfected his shot, especially from the forehand, he adjusts it to the post. He is already in charge of penalties and free kicks at PSG and the national team. That will help you statistically. His negative points: he does not create the game, he needs an assistant to enable him in depth (at PSG it was Messi, in France, Griezmann). He doesn’t pass the ball well, we’d say surprisingly poorly a lot of the time. It was clear that he would reach the podium, but he would not crown. He is a future winner.
In his first season in England, Erling Haaland showed that he is a fierce Viking: not only did he win the treble (Premier League, English Cup and Champions League), he also scored 56 goals. And at 22 years old. Bestial…! He reaches the net in different ways: running over, heading, rebounding, counterattacking with spaces, being in the area, flying through the air, like the extraordinary goal he scored against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. He is a goal savage. At first we thought of a big clumsy standing at the penalty spot, nothing to do with it, he has a lot of mobility, he starts from behind, when he leaves the area he participates in the team’s assembly circuit and knows how to play, he delivers the ball very well and hits it with precision. He measures 1.94 and has a body that allows him to withstand the defenders, even turning them over, but the most important thing about him, in addition to his goal-scoring nose, is not strength but positioning: he is always where the ball lands. He is instinct. And he defines with the manual. Of course, he is a model that does not come from the factory with skill or feinting, dribbling or hooking. He awakens roars, not sighs.
And Messi… His achievement has been the title of French champion – like Mbappé – in which he was chosen as the best foreign player. And the World Cup, no less. The latter is uneven, it weighs tons. The champion and star of Qatar 2022, where he scored 7 goals and gave 3 assists. And, as a bonus, he went on to revolutionize soccer in the United States. He signed for the worst team and made it a world reference. He is the king of the pass-goal. He creates, leads, assists and converts. The entire repertoire. Leo scored 39 goals in the Ballon d’Or eligibility period, less than Haaland and Mbappé, but he doubled them in assists. Likewise, in Messi, the goal is another cliché. And there is the game, right…? At this point it takes miles, for the two of them and the rest of the guild.
Generally, for the analysis of possibilities in these awards, goals and achievements are listed, not games, a fundamental item. How to explain…? If Italy won the 2026 World Cup they would tie with Brazil: they would have five crowns each. What will we say in that case, that they are equal because they both have five World Cups…? No, Brazilian football has been infinitely more than Italian football throughout history. He has had dozens of ball geniuses against some other Italian star (Roberto Baggio…?), he has given ball festivals, he is excellence, class, magic. That’s what Messi is like compared to all the other footballers. Haaland and Mbappé will never carry the ball like Leo nor will they make his wonderful passes, nor will they have his clairvoyance, they will never be able to make Messi’s overflow against Gvardiol, from Croatia, nor the assist for Molina’s goal against Holland nor his delicious free kick goals . Nobody plays like him. And there is his impressive consistency. On Monday, October 16, he turned 19 in the First Division (nineteen…!), On Tuesday he scored two great goals against Peru. The others are scorers, not geniuses. There are Haalands and Mbappés, there may be Vinicius and De Bruynes, not Messis.
Now, in the stage of wisdom, Leo has had a dream season, delivering delicacies, genius, anthology football pieces. His colleagues recognize him, he is the idol of all the players. In the digital election, the public gave its verdict: 38.9% for Leo and the remaining 61.1 for the other twenty-nine on the list. For that reason and for the general perception, it was never so clear: he had to win his eighth award. Which could have been ten or twelve. “If the Ballon d’Or were really for the best player, Messi would win it every year,” reflected Gary Lineker.
(Also read: Draw Martínez suffers bad luck and stars in an unusual own goal, video)
Ronaldo Nazario, Michael Owen, Thierry Henry, Jamie Carragher, Eden Hazard, Ronald Araujo and the atmosphere in general spoke out in favor of the 10. Except the Real Madrid fans, who are angry (they are always angry if a Madrid fan does not receive it).
Calm down, when Messi retires the Ballon d’Or will be more democratic. Word.
JORGE BARRAZA
For the time
@JorgeBarrazaOK
More sports news
-Luis Díaz: the story of his father, his great mentor and the driving force of his sports career
-Colombian soccer players reject the kidnapping of Luis Díaz’s father: ‘We are with you’
-Manchester City, led by Haaland, beats United in the classic
#coronation #Lionel #eighth #Tango