Lionel Messi is officially king of the football world once again. On Monday, the 34-year-old soccer icon won his record seventh Ballon d'Or crown, beating off competition from Chelsea star Jorginho and Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski.
Copa America win helps Messi capture 7th Ballon d'Or title
Messi's win this year is different, though, compared to his previous titles, as it was his exploits on the international stage that helped him capture the prestigious prize. Messi led Argentina to its first Copa America title since 1993, finishing the tournament not only as its top scorer (4 goals) but also as the leader in assists (5).
Messi scored eight goals for Argentina in 2021 as he also helped his country qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Even though he failed to win the Spanish La Liga in his final season with FC Barcelona, Messi finished as that tournament's top scorer. He also scored twice in Barcelona's Copa del Rey Finals win over Athletic Bilbao, part of the 28 goals he scored for the Catalan giants this year.
Messi has had a slow start to his career in Paris Saint-Germain, scoring just four goals since his much-publicized transfer. Messi's accomplishments with Argentina and Barca earlier in the year were enough for voters to hand him the Ballon d'Or. It is a huge award for Messi, who extended his lead over arch-rival Cristiano Ronaldo in Ballon d'Or titles won to two.
Messi had previously won this award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, and 2019. Ronaldo won his five Ballon d'Or crowns in 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017. Ronaldo grabbed the headlines ahead of the announcement of the winners, slamming Ballon d'Or organizer Pascal Ferre.
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Mbappe pays tribute to Messi, but Ronaldo is not happy
The editor-in-chief of France Football told the New York Times that the Portuguese star's only career ambition was to win more awards than Messi. Ronaldo wrote on his Instagram account to refute Ferre's statements, saying that he only used his name to promote the publication he works for.
Ronaldo may not be happy about Messi's latest Ballon d'Or win, but that is not the case at all with the Argentine's PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe. The French star paid tribute to Messi during the star-studded ceremony, saying that he is lucky to play alongside the soccer great in PSG.
Mbappe has drawn comparisons with Messi because of his goal-scoring exploits in the French capital, scoring 120 goals in 145 appearances for PSG since joining the club in 2017. Mbappe told the crowd that he still has a long way to go to match the accomplishments of not only Messi but also Ronaldo, who collected the Ballon d'Or award every year from 2008 to 2019, except for 2018.
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