Cristiano Ronaldo has insisted that soccer’s prime particular person prizes, the Ballon d’Or and The Best, are “losing credibility”.
The now-38-year-old ended 2023 as the highest goalscorer in world soccer, scoring a whopping 54 targets for Portugal and Saudi Pro League outfit Al Nassr throughout the calendar yr – outscoring the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland within the course of.
Despite his goalscoring exploits, the legendary striker wasn’t nominated for the 2023 Ballon d’Or award nor The Best award, with each being given to his long-term rival Lionel Messi as an alternative.
Messi lifted each awards due to his gorgeous performances throughout the World Cup in Saudi Arabia, a event by which he impressed Argentina to their first win of the competitors since 1986.
Speaking to Record, Ronaldo was eager criticise each award ceremonies, hitting out on the voting panels for not together with him on the record of nominees for 2023:
“Ballon d’Or and The Best are shedding credibility,” mentioned Ronaldo.
“It’s not to say that Messi didn’t deserve it, or Haaland or even Mbappe… but the numbers are there and the numbers don’t deceive. You have to consider the entire season.
“The numbers are facts. If you go back and see what happened at Manchester United and the national team, people actually considered me lost… But the truth is that I focused and had a great period at Al Nassr, that’s why I scored 54 goals”.
The ahead has no longer gained certainly one of soccer’s prime particular person awards since 2017, having beforehand lifted The Best and the Ballon d’Or gongs on a powerful seven events. The solely participant to win each awards extra occasions is Messi, with the diminutive ahead successful each a mixed 11 occasions.
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