Barcelona trio Lionel Messi, Andreas Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez are the finalists for the prestigious FIFA Ballon d’Or award. The players were selected from a very talented field that also included Sneidjer and Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, Xavi is not happy with the exclusion of Sneijder. The Dutchman had a stellar season with Inter leading them to a historic treble that included the league, Champions League and the Italian Cup.
As for Sneijder, I know that in Italy they are angry because he is not one of the finalists. I can only agree with them. The Dutchman has had a fantastic year.”
Messi is in the running to win the award for the second consecutive time and should he be announced as the winner on January 23rd, then he will be the youngest ever player to defend his title as the best players in the world.
In my opinion, Messi’s consistency guarantees that he should win the award again. Both Iniesta and Xavi cannot be ruledout as they were also instrumental in Spain’s World Cup triumph.
“A lot of people don’t support us for doing so well in both the league and Champions League. They cannot wait to lay the boots into us.
This statement from Xavi clearly hit the nail on the head. As much as i may not be a Barca fan, i have to admit they play amazing football. This current crop of players could rival the dream team that included Figo, Rivaldo, Kluivert, Cocu etc.
So who will win the award? I can confidently say that Messi is on course to retain his title. However, anything can happen. If England failed to capture the 2018 bid, then anything is possible.
Photo credit: from PerfectSmile_LeoCuccini
