5 footballers from the 2019 Ballon d'Or shortlist who have fallen off
French news magazine France Football released the 2021 Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist a few days ago. Several players who were among the nominees for the Ballon d'Or in 2019 are no longer in the conversation.
Well, football at a professional level can be extremely demanding. To keep performing at the highest level, players need a whole lot of factors to come together. First of all, they should keep their physicality and endurance intact. Any dip in levels will show and players can get left behind easy.
They also need to remain sharp and focused or else the game will pass them by. There are also other factors that can cause a player to fail to reach the levels that he used to. An ill-advised transfer to a team that doesn't suit him can often cause a player to perform poorly or fail to make an impact.
The Ballon d'Or is the most prestigious individual prize in football
The recipient of the 'Golden Ball' is considered the best player in the world. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have exercised a duopoly of sorts over the Ballon d'Or and have won 11 out of the last 12 editions between them.
It shows an unreal level of consistency at the top of the game. That's also part of the reason why we use phrases like 'out of this world' and 'otherworldly' while describing those two players. It is simply not easy to perform at the highest level for a very long time.
With that in mind, let's take a look at five players from the 2019 Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist who have fallen off.
#5 Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid)
It wasn't long ago that Joao Felix was being touted as the heir apparent to the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese international had made quite a name for himself at Benfica as a teenager. He scored 20 goals and provided 11 assists in 43 appearances across all competitions in the 2018-19 season.
Felix won the league title with Benfica and copped a €120 million move to Atletico Madrid. But his debut season in La Liga was extremely underwhelming. He scored just nine goals and provided three assists in 36 appearances across all competitions for the Rojiblancos in the 2019-20 season.
Felix did not cover himself in glory last term either, providing just 16 goal contributions in 40 appearances across all competitions. The 21-year-old definitely has the potential to go on to become a big star but for now, he is perched far away from the Ballon d'Or debate.
Equally ranked at the 28th place for the 2019 #ballondor ⤵️
@joaofelix70 🇵🇹
@Atleti https://t.co/sIOHd6Y2mX
#4 Roberto Firmino (Liverpool)
Liverpool had two great seasons on the trot in 2018-19 and 2019-20, winning the Champions League and the Premier League in those seasons respectively. Their centre forward/false nine, Roberto Firmino, was crucial to their exploits.
The Brazilian is an intelligent footballer with great technical finesse. Firmino acted as a pivot of sorts, enabling Liverpool's electric wingers Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane to flourish. Firmino was a playmaker in the final third and Jurgen Klopp's side greatly benefitted from his presence in the side.
In the 2018-19 season, Firmino scored 16 goals and provided eight assists in 48 appearances across all competitions. However, he has faded greatly since then, letting Salah shoulder most of the load of the goalscoring and creation in the final third.
In fact, in the 2020-21 season, Firmino scored just nine goals and provided nine assists in 48 appearances across all competitions for the Merseysiders. Those are not the kind of numbers that get you into the Ballon d'Or conversation.
Among the nominees for the 2019 #ballondor ⤵️
Roberto Firmino
@LFC https://t.co/4LniSJA3dj