Messi, Cannavaro and 8 Players Who Didn’t Deserve the Ballon d’Or in the Years They Won

Whether it's Erling Haaland or Lionel Messi who wins the 2023 Ballon d'Or, there will be a few complaints.

Manchester City striker Haaland has won the treble - the Champions League, Premier League, and FA Cup - and completely transformed Pep Guardiola's attack.

Meanwhile, Messi continues to defy belief, single-handedly winning the 2022 World Cup for Argentina in Qatar last year at the age of 35.

The expectation is that the Argentine maestro is a frontrunner to win the Ballon d'Or for a record eighth time.

The nature of the Ballon d'Or award- the propensity to nominate particular players regardless of their actual performance, and the perception of favouring certain players are still genuine concerns.

In light of this, Sports Brief examines eight players who perhaps did not merit the Ballon d'Or in the years in which they won.

Luis Figo - 2000

A few months after making one of the most contentious moves in football history from Barcelona to Real Madrid, Figo won the first Ballon d'Or of the new millennium.

With 197 points, the former Portugal international won the Golden Ball award, narrowly beating Zinedine Zidane, who finished in second place with 181 points.

At the time, it was believed that Francesco Totti or Fernando Redondo, who led Real Madrid to the Champions League title in 2000, deserved the Ballon d'Or more.

This argument came after Redondo was named the Champions League's Most Valuable Player and the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year.

However, after the Argentine supported Lorenzo Sanz in the contentious club presidential election, Florentino Pérez infamously orchestrated Redondo's transfer to AC Milan that summer.

Sadly, the defensive midfielder had an injury that forced him to miss more than two years of play, and the Ballon d'Or was subsequently awarded to the more glamorous candidate, Figo.

Meanwhile, Figo later said that Roma's Francesco Totti should have won. “Sorry for stealing the Ballon d’Or in 2000 – you deserved it," he said in a message to the Italian.

Michael Owen - 2001

The then-Liverpool striker was a star in England's 2002 World Cup qualifying matches and had scored 24 goals in 46 games as the Reds won the FA Cup, League Cup, and UEFA Cup.

German goalkeeper, Oliver Kahn, finished third, but the true injustice was Raul Gonzalez being second.

While Owen was doing it in the UEFA Cup, the Real Madrid striker was on his way to a Champions League winners' medal as the competition's leading goalscorer.

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Pavel Nedved - 2003

A player amassing 42 goals and 26 assists in a single calendar year was truly amazing before Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo came along.

The duo have normalised the spectacular. However, Thierry Henry appeared to be a certainty for the Ballon d'Or in 2003 when he achieved those stats.

Paolo Maldini was another choice from Serie A. Nedved of Juventus won instead, becoming just the second Czech player to do so.

Andriy Shevchenko - 2004

Shevchenko was outstanding for AC Milan and won the Ballon d'Or thanks to his contribution to the Serie A triumph.

Although Portugal star, Deco inspired Porto to four trophies that year - the Primeira Liga, the Portuguese Super Cup, the Champions League, and the Intercontinental Cup - there was a general perception that Shevchenko's accomplishments could scarcely match those of Deco.

Fabio Cannavaro - 2006

The Italian is often held up as an example when people claim defenders can't win the Ballon d'Or.

The legendary Juventus defender had a World Cup win on his CV in 2006, but so did his teammate Gianluigi Buffon, and France icon Zinedine Zidane, who many felt were more deserving.

Lionel Messi - 2010

In 2010, the first year that FIFA's World Player of the Year award and Golden Ball were merged, Messi won his second Ballon d'Or in a row.

At the time, there was no questioning the diminutive Argentine's incredible year, in which he scored a stunning 60 goals for Barcelona and Argentina. However, it was widely agreed that other players were more deserving of the Ballon d'Or.

Messi won a single La Liga trophy and his underwhelming performances for Argentina in the FIFA World Cup strengthened the case for his teammates Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez, who placed second and third, respectively.

The decision to leave Wesley Sneijder out of the Ballon d'Or's top three also sparked significant indignation and received harsh criticism from the football community.

Sneijder was the driving force behind Inter Milan's illustrious treble-winning season under Jose Mourinho. He was also the UEFA Champions League's leading assist provider. His efforts at the FIFA World Cup, when he scored five goals, propelled the Netherlands to the final.

Sneijder won the World Cup's Silver Ball and Bronze Boot as well. The Dutchman's impact for both club and country in 2010 was massive, and it is certainly absurd that he never even made it to the Ballon d'Or podium.

Cristiano Ronaldo - 2013

Cristiano Ronaldo was phenomenal in 2013, but it wasn't without controversy that Pele opened the envelope and read out his name.

His 66 goals in 56 games weren't enough to convince some people that the trophy shouldn't have gone to Franck Ribery, who had played a starring role in Bayern Munich's treble.

Luka Modric - 2018

When Luka Modric won the Ballon d'Or in 2018, he became the first player since Kaka in 2007 to win the award outside of Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.

The 34-year-old star took home the coveted prize with 753 points, followed by Cristiano Ronaldo with 476 points and Antoine Griezmann with 414 points.

The Ballon d'Or winner, who scored just three goals and provided 11 assists for club and country in the calendar year, was roundly criticised by the football community, who naturally exploded in unison to condemn both the rankings and the winner.

Many believed that Ronaldo, who was more instrumental in Real Madrid's Champions League triumph, should have won.