5 World Cup stars who could break Messi's and Ronaldo's Ballon d’Or dominance this year
World Cup performances certainly play a role in the Ballon d’Or nominations. Only because Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were ruthless for Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively in 2010 and 2014, none of the World Cup performers were able to win it.
However, 2018 is a lot different. Lionel Messi’s Barcelona crashed out of the UEFA Champions League is the quarterfinals and Ronaldo’s Real Madrid finished third in La Liga. Though Ronaldo lifted his third Champions League title in a row, he was not at his consistent best.
Also, both Argentina and Portugal were knocked out of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in the round of 16. Hence, the possibility of a Ballon d’Or winner other than Messi and Ronaldo is on the cards this year. No one other than these two have won the award in the last 10 years and such is the domination of the duo when it comes to Ballon d'Or.
Without much ado, let’s take a look at the five World Cup stars who could break Messi and Ronaldo Ballon d’Or dominance this year:
#5 Luka Modric
Croatians advanced to the quarter-finals of the 2018 World Cup after beating Denmark on penalties. They are playing well and has won all their games in the tournament so far. They will take on the host Russia in the quarter-finals on Saturday.
One of the standout players for Croatia in the World Cup is the Real Madrid star, Luka Modric. Luka Modric was phenomenal for Real Madrid in the 2017/18 campaign and led them to their third successive UEFA Champions League win.
The 32-year-old has scored two important goals in the tournament so far. Captaining his country in the tournament, Modric has been phenomenal in the first four games for Croatia. If he can lead Croatia to glory in the World Cup, he could most likely land the prestigious Ballon d’Or award this year.