5 players who did not deserve to be ranked so high in the 2021 Ballon d'Or standings
The prestigious Ballon d'Or award returned in 2021 after a year-long hiatus in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Paris Saint-Germain and Argentina forward Lionel Messi claimed a seventh crown, with Robert Lewandowski finishing in second and Jorginho in third place.
Messi was impressive for club and country in 2021, with his performance earning him the Player of the Tournament award at the Copa America. Argentina won the Copa America largely due to Messi's contribution, and that was enough to include him among the nominees for the Ballon d'Or this year.
He also led Barcelona to the Copa del Rey title, and led the Spanish La Liga in goals scored.
Ballon d'Or rankings always stir up interesting debates
Not everyone was pleased with the standings of the top 30 players in the world, and here are five players who probably did not deserve their rankings:
#5 Raheem Sterling
Manchester City and England forward Raheem Sterling finished in 15th place in this year's Ballon d'Or rankings. He scored 14 goals and contributed 12 assists for Manchester City in 49 appearances in all competitions last season, and netted three goals in Euro 2020.
Sterling was ranked higher than England team-mate and captain Harry Kane, who led the English Premier League in goals and assists in 2020-21. Sterling has not been at his best recently, with his tally of 14 goals last season his lowest since 2016-17, Pep Guardiola's first season in charge of the club.
Raheem Sterling tops Neymar in the Ballon d'Or rankings. https://t.co/aZcY2VTS57
Sterling did win the Premier League and finished as runner-up in the Champions League and Euro 2020 final. However, purely based on individual performance, he did not deserve to be ranked 15th ahead of Harry Kane, Bruno Fernandes or Ruben Dias.
#4 Leonardo Bonucci
Juventus' defensive stalwart Leonardo Bonucci finished in 12th place in the Ballon d'Or rankings after a productive year at Euro 2020 with Italy. The experienced defender was a part of the water-tight Italian defense that helped them win their first international tournament since 2006.
Someone please explain me how Lautaro, Mount, Kjaer and Bonucci all finished above Kane in the Ballon d'Or rankings.
Despite having a poor season at club level with Juventus, Bonucci was deemed to have been the second best defender in the world ahead of Manchester City's Ruben Dias.
Bonucci was only behind team-mate Giorgio Chiellini among defenders in the rankings, a far cry from the reality of the past year. A fine defender, no doubt, but Bonucci should not have been ranked so high based on just one tournament.