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Will Lionel Messi be able to win a record-seventh Ballon d'Or this year? He is the favourite to finish at the top of the podium but we wouldn't be too shocked if things don't work out in his favour either.
The 2021 Ballon d'Or will be awarded to the best male and female footballers on November 29th. The Ballon d'Or is presented by French news magazine France Football and it is, without doubt, the most prestigious individual prize in football. It was cancelled in 2020 in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Ballon d'Or winner is picked on the basis of a combination of votes from journalists, national team coaches and captains. Last year, Robert Lewandowski was well clear of his competition and is justified in feeling robbed of the award in its absence.
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Lionel Messi is widely touted as the favourite to win the Ballon d'Or this year
However, it's a completely different story this time around. Lionel Messi is tipped to be the favourite to win the Ballon d'Or by many. However, there are several other top competitors whose credentials are not easy to overlook.
Without further ado, let's take a look at five of the biggest competitors for Lionel Messi for the Ballon d'Or award.
#5 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Manchester United)
Cristiano Ronaldo is 36-years-old but he continues to be one of the most prolific strikers on the planet. He most recently scored a hat-trick for Portugal against Luxembourg to take his international goal tally to a whopping 115. He is now six goals clear of former Iranian footballer Ali Daei.
Ronaldo won the Serie A Golden Boot in the 2020-21 season, scoring 29 goals in 33 appearances. He then went on to win the Euro 2020 Golden Boot as well, scoring five goals and providing an assist in four appearances.
The lack of a major trophy could hamper Ronaldo's chances but he's making sure he does not go down without a fight. The Portuguese international won the Premier League Player of the Month award in his first month back in the Premier League.
Ronaldo has already scored five goals in six games for Manchester United this season and is a worthy competitor for the Ballon d'Or this term as well. He will be desperate to match Lionel Messi's haul and win it for a sixth time.
#4 N'Golo Kante (France/Chelsea)
N'Golo Kante unfortunately missed out on the last two games of France's triumphant run in the UEFA Nations League after contracting the coronavirus. France's early exit at Euro 2020 has also hindered his chances of winning the Ballon d'Or.
But going into the summer break, Kante seemed to have made a great case for himself for the 2021 Ballon d'Or. After all, he had produced some mesmerizing performances in Chelsea's victorious UEFA Champions League campaign.
Kante won four man-of-the-match awards in the knockout stages of the Champions League for the Blues. His tenacity, work ethic and tactical intelligence earned him the UEFA Midfielder of the Season award as well. But he might just stop short of pipping Lionel Messi to the Ballon d'Or this term,.
#3 Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid)
It's safe to say that no one has improved their credentials in the Ballon d'Or race since the start of the 2021-22 season like Karim Benzema has. The Frenchman has been in sublime form all summer.
He started off by justifying a call-up to the French national side after a gap of six years by scoring four goals in four appearances at Euro 2020. Benzema scored a goal each in the semi-finals and the finals of France's triumphant run in the UEFA Nations League as well.
Although he went trophyless at club level in the 2020-21 season, he scored a total of 30 goals and provided nine assists in 46 appearances across all competitions. He has also been one of the most in-form players in the new season.
The 33-year-old has scored 10 goals and provided seven assists in just 10 appearances across all competitions for Real Madrid in the 2021-22 season so far. He has definitely worked his way into the Ballon d'Or conversation in the past couple of months.
#2 Jorginho (Italy/Chelsea)
Jorginho has had the best summer among all of Lionel Messi's competitors in this year's Ballon d'Or race. The Italian midfield lynchpin played a crucial role as Chelsea won the Champions League last term.
His tactical intelligence and technical expertise were of paramount importance as Italy were crowned champions of Europe in the summer. Jorginho has been able to dispense both his offensive and defensive duties with aplomb from the heart of midfield for both club and country.
He also won the UEFA Super Cup with Chelsea after beating Europa League winners Villarreal early in the new season. Jorginho's consistency and trophy haul makes him one of the favourites to finish on the Ballon d'Or podium this time around.
#1 Robert Lewandowski (Poland/Bayern Munich)
On being quizzed about the possibility of winning the Ballon d'Or this term, Robert Lewandowksi told MARCA:
"My achievements speak for themselves because my last two years have been a big achievement, not just for me but for any player in history."
We'll have to agree with him on that. No player has matched the sheer numbers that Lewandowski has been able to put up or match his goalscoring rate in recent times. The 33-year-old scored 48 goals and provided nine assists from 40 appearances across all competitions for Bayern Munich in the 2020-21 season.
However, he only has the Bundesliga title in the trophy department and while that's not underwhelming by any stretch of the imagination, it might not be enough. Lewandowski also scored three goals in three matches at Euro 2020 but Poland crashed out of the competition in the group stages.
He has been in terrific form this term as well, scoring 13 goals and providing an assist in 10 appearances across all competitions for Bayern Munich so far.
