Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo is giving fellow La Liga rival Lionel Messi a run for his money for the 2011 FIFA Ballon d’Or award as the Portuguese striker capped a fantastic few days his had with Los Merengues by not only bagging a hat trick in last night’s fixture against Osasuna, but also by winning his second Golden Boot award.

The 26 year old was awarded the Golden Boot award for 2011 for his exploits in the 2010/2011 season that saw win score an impressive and unmatched 40 league goals.

Ronaldo was awarded the award by Legends Alfredo Di Stefano and Eusebio in a lavish ceremony at the Intercontinental Hotel in Madrid. In attendance were club officials and family and of course his girlfriend Irina Shayk who threatened to steal the lime light from her superstar boyfriend for other reasons apart from her dressing.

The 25 year old Sports Illustrated Model wore jewelry valued in the region of £100,000. That said, Ronaldo was pleased with the award but was quick to say that he would be much happier if his club lifted bigger trophies rather than him winning more individual awards.

“I would trade this award right now for the Champions League or La Liga,” Ronaldo said. “You can only win individual awards because the team help you.

“I would like to win something bigger at a collective level. I do not think about breaking records, but about Real Madrid. I think our team is more mature and with more trust, and we all have to think the same way to achieve an important goal.”

More importantly, Ronaldo expressed that he does not fear competition from Messi and that his obsession with outshining the Argentina star only existed in the minds of the media.

“I am not worried about the competition I get from Messi,” he explained. “I like to play, people like to watch me play and I would not change anything.

“It is good to compete with the best. I like to compete with Messi and with all the best players in Europe, as a team, not as an individual player. “

Photo Credit © americanistadechiapas