5 possible future Ballon d'Or rivalries in football
The FIFA Ballon d’Or might not be a common entity anymore but the independent award is still one of the most coveted honours to receive for any professional footballer. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are the two names who have been dominating the top spot for the last 9 years.
It has been impossible for anyone else to even have a look in. Fans of the sport have resigned to accept that these two winning awards is a going to be a regular thing. It might have been special the first couple of times their names were up in lights but since then it is considered the norm.
There will come a time when someone breaks their domination but the question on everyone’s lips is who? Here are 5 possible rivalries that could define the future of the award.
#1 Neymar vs Antoine Griezmann
FC Barcelona’s Neymar has been on the Ballon d’Or shortlist before but has only managed finishing 3rd in the list. The Brazilian is widely tipped as Lionel Messi’s heir as the club’s talisman once the Argentine retires.
There were several doubts about his ability to cope with the intensity of European football when he first came to the club. But the 24-year-old has since gone on to prove his doubters wrong and win every major trophy there is to win in a short period of time.
Neymar did not have the greatest 2016 but has shown he is capable of filling into Messi's’ boots when the little playmaker is unavailable. The Brazilian’s class and match winning ability really came to the fore during the early stages of the 2015/16 season when Messi was out of action for two months.
The ease with which he annihilated the Real Madrid defence was particularly impressive.
Antoine Griezmann’s spectacular rise has been well documented over the past two months. The graceful Frenchman is a unique breed of player and his performances for both Atletico Madrid and the French national team in the past year have earned him rave reviews.
Another who knows how it feels to miss out on winning the award finished third in the standings this time. Griezmann would automatically improve any team in the world because of his versatility and his knack for finding the back of the net.
Atletico Madrid did not possess a world class striker in their arsenal and when Griezmann arrived from Real Sociedad not many thought he would manage to fill that void so well. Originally a left sided player, Simeone moved him into a more central position and it has worked wonders for the club.
He narrowly missed out on winning the UEFA Champions League last season but knowing how determined he is, the only way he can go now is up.