4 legends who deserved to win the Ballon d'Or

#4 David Beckham

David Beckham's inspirational performances for England deserved a Ballon d'Or in 2001

With the power of hindsight, many observers would try to claim that David Beckham was more flash than substance, had plenty of weaknesses as a player and only rose to his massive fame due to his good looks, charisma, and his celebrity status. But that’d be totally unfair to a tremendous, world-class player at his peak – a man who arguably should’ve won the Ballon d’Or at some point in his career.

Beckham did manage to come second in the voting in 1999 behind Rivaldo; that was of course following the season in which he played a pivotal role in Manchester United’s famous treble victory (winning the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League) but his best year was arguably 2001, the year that his England teammate Michael Owen claimed the Ballon d’Or after winning the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup with Liverpool.

Beckham on the other hand claimed the Premier League title in 2000/01 with Manchester United – scoring 9 goals and delivering 12 assists in the process – and almost single-handedly took England to the 2002 World Cup with his famous performance in a qualifier against Greece, scoring that last-minute free-kick to ensure qualification.

He also scored 5 goals for England that year – a career-best return for him that also included a rocket strike against Finland and another free-kick classic against Mexico.

Owen might’ve won more trophies that season but due to his incredible performances for his country, it was probably Beckham who deserved to win the Ballon d’Or.