The world shut down for months due to the deadly COVID-19 pandemic from late 2019 to almost the mid-2020s. The virus has already killed over 280k people across the globe. To fight against this deadly virus, people followed social distancing/self-isolation. Many countries and cities went into lockdown. The pandemic COVID-19 pandemic forced every sporting events across the globe. Football is one of them. Most of the football leagues postponed for over 2 months with uncertainty whether the 2019-20 season could be completed or not. France has already suspended Ligue 1 announcing the league leader Paris Saint Germain as the champions this season. However, other top leagues have been planning to resume football soon by May or June. Most of the leagues will be played on the empty stadium as safety measures.
Around the corner when a football season comes to a closure, football fans and pundits present a verdict about who should win the Ballon d’Or or they prepare their list of top candidates who deserve to win Ballon d’Or. The Ballon d’Or is one of the prestigious individual awards any player has dreamt about getting one in his/her professional football career. It does not surprise us that two of the best footballers in the world, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi dominated the football for a decade and they surely deserved it. The two players might have aged but their dominance on football is still prevalent. The 32-year-old Argentine star Lionel Messi stands atop with 6 Ballon d’Ors in his pocket, whereas the 35-years-old Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo is just one ballon d’Or short to tie with Lionel Messi.
Lionel Messi-Cristiano Ronaldo’s dominance in world football might have started fading by a little, but they never fail to surprise their fans. On the other hand, the rise of young talented footballers has been giving tough competition to them. World-class players like Neymar, Eden Hazard, Mohamed Salah, Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland are few of the players that have impressed football fans as well. Statistically, Lionel Messi always is the favorite one alongside Cristiano Ronaldo. Here are some of the top players who will present tough candidacy for this year’s Ballon d’Or 2020.
Source: @fcbarcelona
1. Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
As Lionel Messi has already bagged record six Ballon d’Or awards so far, he is still the favorite to win his 7th. Messi is so far the top scorer in La Liga with 19 goals. On the other hand, Lionel Messi has led Barcelona to the top of the table this season with 58 points, 2 points short of Real Madrid. Messi also helped Barcelona to reach the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League Round of 16. They have yet to play the Round of 16 2nd leg fixture against Napoli. The match has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
No other player can stop Lionel Messi to win Ballon d’Or 2020 if he finishes La Liga as top goalscorer and lead his club to La Liga title as well as UEFA Champions League title victory.
Source: @9sportpro
2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo is a glory-hunter. Not only he fights for club and country glories, he always eyes for individual awards as well. The 35-years old Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo has already bagged 5 Ballon d’Or awards so far and is eyeing for his 6th. Juventus is on the top of the table with 63 points, 1 point ahead of Lazio. And Ronaldo is the league’s second top goalscorer with 21 goals, 6 goals less than Lazio striker Ciro Immobile. Cristiano tied his record for scoring in 11 consecutive Serie A matches this season. He had scored 16 goals in 11 consecutive matches. Juventus won the first leg against Lyon in the UEFA Champions League 2019-20. Their second leg was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cristiano Ronaldo will undoubtedly win his 6th Ballon d’Or if he improves his stats for the season and lead Juventus to Champions League title.
Source: @talksport
3. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Egyptian footballer Mohamed Salah became the star of Liverpool in the pursuit of their Champions League glory last season. Despite their brilliance performance, Liverpool managed to finish second in the Premier League table, behind Manchester City. Atletico Madrid thrashed Liverpool out of the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League. They did not manage to make it to the quarterfinals. However, they are close to Premier League glory this season. Liverpool stands at the top of the table with 82 points in 29 games, followed by Manchester City with 57 points in 28 games. Liverpool will surely lift Premier League trophy this year, thanks to Jurgen Klopp and his team. This season, Mohamed Salah has scored 16 league goals in 26 league appearances, 20 goals in all competitions. The 27-year old Salah has been one of the key players for the team since he joined the English club in 2014.
Mohamed Salah and the Ballon d’Or 2020 in his name won’t be an injustice to football.
Source: @pinterest
4. Neymar (PSG)
The Brazilian sensation Neymar is one of the top players always favorite to make the spot on top 3 for Ballon d’Or. Having never won the award to date, the 28-year-old striker has remained behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo so far. This season, Neymar scored 13 league goals, 5 goals less than Ligue 1 golden shoe winner, and PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe. An injury-prone Neymar missed over 10 league games in the 2019-120 season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the France football concluded the league announcing the league-leader PSG the champion this season.
Neymar has certainly a possibility to make the final list for the Ballon d’Or this season.
Source: @dailymail.co.uk
5. Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
The 21-years old French striker Kylian Mbappe is not far from winning his first Ballon d’Or award. The young talent has impressed the world for his football skills. Best known for his dribbling, speed, and finishing, Mbappe has already won 3 Ligue 1 titles with PSG and a World Cup for his country, France. Dubbed as the strongest contenders for every glory, Mbappe has achieved a lot in football at a young age. This season, Mbappe was the key player for PSG that won the Ligue 1 title, having scored 18 league goals in 20 league appearances. He finished 2019-20 Ligue 1 as the top goalscorer tied with AS Monaco striker Wissam Ben Yedder. PSG is close to qualifying to 2019-20 UEFA Champions League quarterfinals as they defeated Borussia Dortmund 3-0 in the first leg. PSG who has star players like Mbappe, Neymar, Cavani, and Di Maria is not far from winning their first Champions League glory. Mbappe certainly has shadowed Neymar in recent seasons. The last time Mbappe was close to Ballon d’Or award was in 2018 when he finished 4th in the 2018 Ballon d’Or.
If Mbappe manages to continue to lead his club to glory, he will surely make it to the final 3 in the coming years. It won’t surprise football fans if he gets his 1st Ballon d’Or this year.
Source: @bundesliga
6. Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Polish striker for Bayern Munich, Robert Lewandowksi is one of the prolific strikers in the world. Having joined the Bayern Munich in 2014, he has been regularly scoring goals for Munich and has established himself as one of the best Bayern Munich-signings. Lewandowksi finished fourth at the 2015 Ballon d’Or. This season, Lewandowksi has already scored 39 goals in 33 appearances in all competition with 25 league goals in 23 league appearances. At present, Bayern Munich stands on the top of the Bundesliga with 55 points, 4 more than Borussia Dortmund. Bayern Munich won the Round of 16 first leg fixture against Chelsea and was due to face Chelsea in the 2nd leg. If Bayern Munich finds the Champions League glory this season, Lewandowski would be the most important player in doing so. Thus, Lewandowski for the Ballon d’Or can’t be ignored.
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