Lionel Messi Robbed of Seventh Ballon d’Or? Barcelona Captain Was Highest-Rated Player in Europe This Season, According to Stats
Lionel Messi, who won the prestigious Ballon d'Or trophy in 2019, will keep hold for his crown for another year. The Barcelona captain has won the coveted individual award for a record six times but was he robbed of his seventh win and stats certainly show he was.
France Football on July 20, 2020 (Monday) announced that the Ballon d’Or award will not be awarded this year due to the ‘lack of sufficient fair conditions’. This means that Lionel Messi, who won the prestigious trophy in 2019, will keep hold for his crown for another year. The Barcelona captain has won the coveted individual award for a record six times but was he robbed of his seventh win and stats certainly show he was. Ballon d’Or 2020: France Football Cancel Prestigious Award Due to 'Lack of Sufficient Fair Conditions'.
This is for the first time since the award’s inception in 1956, that the prestigious trophy will not be given to the best football player of that year. The current footballing season has been an unusual one as competitions were postponed amid the coronavirus pandemic with the remaining scheduled being completed in a hurry, with player’s receiving very little rest. Ballon d’Or 2020 Cancelled: Twitterati Feels Robert Lewandowski Has Been Robbed off the Top Prize by France Football (See Memes and Reactions).
This situation has forced France Football to cancel this year’s awards. But if stats are one of the things to go by, Barcelona captain Lionel Mess would be lifting his seventh Ballon d'Or trophy come the end of the year. According to stats released by WhoScored.com, the 33-year-old has been the highest-rated player in Europe this season.
Top-Rated Players in Europe
| Sr.No | Player | Team | Rating |
| 1 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 8.71 |
| 2 | Kylian Mbappe | PSG | 8.14 |
| 3 | Robert Lewandowski | Bayern Munich | 8.13 |
| 4 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Juventus | 7.91 |
| 5 | Kevin De Bruyne | Manchester City | 7.91 |
| 6 | Angel Di Maria | PSG | 7.75 |
| 7 | Dimitri Payet | Marsielle | 7.73 |
| 8 | Josep Ilicic | Atalanta | 7.65 |
| 9 | Jadon Sancho | Borussia Dortmund | 7.64 |
| 10 | Timo Werner | RB Leipzig | 7.60 |
However, these are the things to consider if the award was being given this year but it is not. Lionel Messi, despite Barcelona’s struggles this season has had stellar individual campaign. The 33-year-old scored 25 league gals in La Liga 2019-20 and won a record seventh Pichichi Trophy, overtaking Telmo Zarra and Alfredo De Stefano.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 22, 2020 05:36 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).