Sir Alex Ferguson believes Cristiano Ronaldo deserves to win the Ballon d’Or this year after breaking numerous records.
Cristiano Ronaldo has been one of those rare players in world football who keeps on growing in stature as he ages. At 36, the Portuguese has won it all at club level and has been strong since the season began. Since signing for Manchester United in the summer, Ronaldo has been scoring goals with his usual regularity.
His latest hat-trick during the international break signified his importance to the national team. These are strikes that usually help sway the votes for the grand individual prize, the Ballon d’Or. The initial 30-man nominations are out, and to no one’s surprise, the Manchester United man features.
He is joined by other accomplished stars such as Jorginho, Robert Lewandowski, N’Golo Kante, Jorginho and formidable foe Lionel Messi, among others. The Argentine, who has been his lone contender, in the past decade is considered one of the favourites, but there is enough backing for Ronaldo to take home the award.
Ronaldo has recently broken more records at the club and international level while being just five short of reaching 800-career goals.
In 2021 alone, Ronaldo surpassed Pele and Josef Bican as the highest overall goalscorer in history. At the Euros, he became the highest scorer in the tournament’s history with 14 overall strikes while also making the most international appearances of all time with 182 caps.
So far, the predictions are divided between Messi and Ronaldo. The Portuguese is performing at the very best for votes to come in his favour. He is also backed by many greats of the game, including Manchester United’s former legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
Spanish outlet MARCA posted some comments from Sir Alex, as the former boss described why the Portuguese star deserves the grand prize.
Ferguson said, “Cristiano deserves it. This year, he’s broken record after record.”
On the other hand, Ronaldo has been bullish about his chances but retains a high self-confidence in his abilities and keeps dreaming of awards, titles.
Ronaldo commented, “I always promised that I would want more and more. It’s inside me, in my DNA. We must never be satisfied, never slack off, and always try and reach the highest we can.”
