"Give him the Ballon d'Or, damn it" - Luis Suarez names his Ballon d'Or favourite over Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
Barcelona legend Luis Suarez has said that Bayern Munich ace Robert Lewandowski deserves to win the 2021 Ballon d'Or award over Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Suarez went as far as to say that if Robert Lewandowski does not win the 2021 Ballon d'Or award, he would personally offer his award to the Polish forward. Suarez was one of the early winners of the Ballon d'Or award, winning it in 1960.
Speaking to Carrusel Deportivo (via EuroSport), Luis Suarez said:
"Give Lewandowski the Ballon d'Or, damn it! If not, I'll give you mine!"
Luis Suarez was the first Barcelona player to win the Ballon d'Or award. The Spaniard beat the likes of Ferenc Puskas, Alfredo Di Stefano and Bobby Charlton to win the prestigious accolade.
Robert Lewandowski has been unlucky with the Ballon d'Or award. The 33-year-old forward netted 55 goals in 47 games as Bayern Munich won their second continental treble in 2019-20. However, the Ballon d'Or award was cancelled that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Former Barcelona and Inter midfielder and 1960 Ballon d'Or winner Luis Suárez Miramontes: "Give the Ballon d'Or to Lewandowski, damn it! Otherwise, I'll give him mine" [@carrusel] https://t.co/YY2Xr5uWIJ
Lewandowski has said that winning the Ballon d'Or award would mean a lot to him, as he has won titles and scored goals galore in the last few seasons. Speaking to MARCA last month, Lewandowski said:
"The possibility of winning the Ballon d'Or means a lot to me; it makes me feel proud, if you look at everything I've achieved, not just this year, last year as well when they cancelled the ceremony, I've won a lot of titles, scored a lot of goals."
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are always Ballon d'Or contenders
For the past decade, both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been two of the top contenders for the Ballon d'Or award. This year has been no different, as Messi is deemed as one of the favourites to win the prestigious 'Golden Ball'.
The six-time Ballon d'Or winner guided Argentina to their first Copa America title in over 25 years. That also happened to be Messi's first senior international trophy with the Albiceleste.
Ronaldo, a five-time winner, is also one of the nominees for the 2021 Ballon d'Or award. He has been scoring goals at an alarming rate for club and country. However, the Manchester United star is not one of the favourites for the award this year. He is behind Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski, Jorginho and Karim Benzema, as he didn't win any major title during the year.
The 2021 Ballon d'Or nominees are here 🏆
Who should win? 🤔 https://t.co/DNB5zXTRBC
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have maintained a duopoly on the Ballon d'Or award since 2008. The pair has won 11 of the last 12 awards, with Luka Modric interrupting their reign in 2018.