Wenger: I wouldn't have voted for Messi for the Ballon d'Or

Arsenal Manager, Arsene Wenger has said that he wouldn’t have voted for Argentine star and Player of the Year Lionel Messi. He said that either Cristiano Ronaldo or Andres Iniesta deserved the prestigious award.

Although he agreed that Messi was the best footballer, Wenger said that Ronaldo and Iniesta had helped their respective teams more than Messi.

Ronaldo took Real Madrid to great heights to win the Spanish League and Iniesta was named Player of the Tournament in the Euro Championship last year.

When asked whether Messi deserved the Ballon d’Or, Wenger told Arsenal.com: “No, not this year.

“For me Messi is certainly the best player I have ever seen in the game, but I believe that this year he has really been rewarded for what he did individually, rather than what he won for his team.

“For once he has not been in a team that won absolutely everything. He did not win the Champions League, he did not win the Spanish league and he didn’t win anything with his country, but individually it’s true he had an exceptional year, scoring 91 goals.

“I believe he has been rewarded for that, but for me I’m more a fan of collective sport, so I feel people like Casillas, Ronaldo – who won the championship – and especially Iniesta deserved it more. He’s always number two or three, but he won the European Championship with Spain – he could have deserved it this year.”