Wesley Sneijder has responded to claims suggesting that Lionel Messi unfairly won the Ballon d’Or ahead of him, back in 2010. Notably, the duopoly of Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi had already started in 2008, and the two legendary superstars would go on to win a combined 13 Ballons d’Or.
While the Portuguese striker has won five Ballons d’Or, the Argentine playmaker has racked up a record eight awards. This figure might have been seven, though, if Sneijder had won the award in 2010. The former midfielder was a massive part of Inter Milan’s success under Jose Mourinho that season. He helped them complete the treble – Serie A, Coppa Italia, and the UEFA Champions League, scoring eight goals and giving 15 assists in 41 games across competitions.
Trending
19-year-old Real Madrid star retires after rare infection while undergoing ACL surgery
Aside from his glorious campaign, which saw Sneijder named the UEFA midfielder of the year, he also impressed in the World Cup for the Netherlands. In the tournament, where he helped them reach the final, he scored an impressive five goals and giving one assist.
It is therefore understandable that the 40-year-old feels he was robbed, as Messi only won LaLiga with Barcelona in 2010. However, Sneijder is not too unhappy about the situation, as he revealed in a recent interview (via Arielipillo on X):
“Now, in 2024, 14 years later, people are still talking about it. They are telling me like ‘Wes, you got robbed’. Imagine I won it and people now would say ‘Yeah, but he robbed it’. Individual prizes are nice, but team prizes…raising the cup, the Champions League, was for me more valuable than winning the Golden Ball.”
This comes amidst conversations around the 2024 Ballon d’Or, which Manchester City midfielder Rodri clinched. Real Madrid superstar Vinicius Jr seemed to have one hand on the Golden Ball. However, he soon learned he would not win the award, which led to him and his club Real Madrid snubbing the ceremony.
Lionel Messi reacts to 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony
Lionel Messi took to Instagram to react after the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony revealed the winners in each category. While Rodri notably won the men’s Golden Ball, Aitana Bonmati clinched the women’s.
Messi particularly shared words of praise for his Argentina teammates, including Emiliano Martinez, who won the Yashin trophy (via SPORTbible):
“Congratulations to all the winners and nominated ones for the Ballon d’Or 2024. Especially to Dibu, what a great, another award for the best goalkeeper in the world. And to Lautaro, to Scaloni and Garnacho.”
Lamine Yamal notably won the Kopa Trophy, while Carlo Ancelotti and Emma Hayes were recognized as the best coaches of the year. Real Madrid were the best men’s team, while Barcelona Femeni were the best women’s side.
