As the announcement date for the winner of the 2019 Ballon d’Or draws closer (2 December), many football pundits are up and about talking about who should win the golden ball.
As the announcement date for the winner of the 2019 Ballon d’Or draws closer (2 December), many football pundits are up and about talking about who should win the golden ball.
Cristiano Ronaldo is set to face fierce competition from the likes of eternal rival Lionel Messi and the in-form Virgil van Dijk.
There are just over two weeks to go until the winner is unveiled and Iker Casillas unleashed a fierce debate on Twitter after sharing his opinions about the same.
The former Real Madrid goalkeeper believes that his former teammate Ronaldo should not win this year's award.
He tweeted, "[Virgil] van Dijk was chosen as UEFA's best player; [Lionel] Messi was chosen by FIFA; if Cristiano wins the Ballon d'Or, it would seem to me that the guidelines we use in football to determine who wins its biggest individual awards are not logical".
The UEFA Men's Player of the Year is chosen by 53 top sports journalists, who vote for their top three players, with first, second and third place receiving five, three and one points respectively.
FIFA's is on the other hand-chosen by captains and coaches of all national teams in FIFA-affiliated federations in five continents. Even fans have a say through an online ballot which accounts for 50 per cent of the final result.
However, these two awards are chosen based on performances throughout an entire season, whereas the Ballon d'Or spans a calendar year.
It included every match, friendlies ever played, which is then chosen by 193 sports journalists.
Luka Modric broke the monopoly of Ronaldo and Messi 12 months ago, with the Real Madrid midfielder taking the top spot. Now Van Dijk - who topped the Goal 50 for 2019 - has desired to land the Ballon d’Or.
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 "Cristiano Ronaldo, Iker Casillas, Virgil van Dijk and Lionel Messi")
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