The nominees for the 2021 Ballon d’Or were announced late last week after being cancelled last time out due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Lionel Messi who is viewed as the bookies’ favourite to bag a historic 7th Ballon d’Or crown. Amongst the other front-runners, though, are the likes of Robert Lewandowski, and Chelsea pair N’Golo Kante and Jorginho.
One star name, on the other hand, who has seemingly been overlooked by many when it comes to his chances of bagging the prize, is Man United legend, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Here are the first 20 nominees for the Men’s #ballondor pic.twitter.com/tIHav6s9gx
— #BallondOr (@francefootball) October 8, 2021
Former Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, has named Ronaldo as the player who should win the Ballon d’ Or this year.
CR7 won his first Ballon d’Or while playing under Ferguson. According to the Scotsman, Cristiano deserves the Ballon d’ Or because he has broken record after record this year.
“Cristiano Ronaldo deserves to win the Ballon d’Or. This year he has broken record after record.”
Earlier, Sir Alex Ferguson played a crucial role in Cristiano Ronaldo securing a blockbuster return to Old Trafford in the summer transfer window.
Since returning to the club, Ronaldo has been excellent for United. The 36-year-old has netted five goals in six appearances for the club across competitions.
He also scored a hat-trick during the international break when Portugal locked horns with Luxembourg in their 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
And Ronaldo is now only five goals away from passing 800 career goals.
Sir Alex Ferguson: “Cristiano deserves the Ballon d’Or. This year he’s broken record after record.” [marca]
☑️ Most goals in football’s history
☑️ Most international goals
☑️ Most international hat-tricks
☑️ Most EURO goals
☑️ Most apps for a UEFA nation
☑️ Most UCL apps pic.twitter.com/RYgr6ZnL73
— InfoCristiano (@InfoCristiano) October 14, 2021
Other records that have tumbled to the Portuguese this year have been the highest scorer at the Euros – Ronaldo now has 14 – and the highest number of international appearances, with 182.
He is also the only player to ever be top scorer in the Premier League, LaLiga Santander and Serie A.
The Man United superstar would draw level with Messi in the Ballon d’Or record books with a 2021 triumph.
