"When Messi’s envelope came out, it was fair" - Barcelona boss Xavi on missing out on Ballon d'Or to Lionel Messi in 2010
Barcelona boss Xavier Hernandez has no qualms missing out on the 2010 Ballon d'Or award to his then teammate Lionel Messi.
After playing a key role in Spain's maiden FIFA World Cup triumph in South Africa that year, Xavi was one of the favourites for the 2010 Ballon d'Or. Instead, it was his teammate Messi who took home the award for the second straight year.
More than a decade later, Messi has added six more Ballon d'Or awards to his collection, the last one coming earlier this week. However, the current Barca boss is far from bitter about missing out on the coveted award at the expense of his teammate.
Ahead of his team's La Liga trip to Real Sociedad on Saturday, Xavi said (as per Barca Universal via Mundo Deportivo) that the Ballon d'Or votes in 2010 were 'evenly spread':
“It’s a voting issue. If people vote… That’s how it works. In 2010 the votes were very evenly spread. There was Iniesta, Villa, Casillas, me? The votes were distributed. When Messi’s envelope came out, it was fair. My feeling was that justice was done to the best footballer.”
That year, Messi finished ahead of his then Barcelona teammates Andres Iniesta and Xavi. Three more 2010 FIFA World Cup winners - Iker Casillas (seventh), David Villa (eighth) and Xabi Alonso (tenth) finished in the top 10.
How did Barcelona legend Lionel Messi fare in the 2009-10 season?
Lionel Messi was at the peak of his powers in the 2009-10 season in Pep Guardiola's all-conquering Barcelona team.
After bagging 38 goals and 19 assists in their historic 2008-09 treble-winning campaign - the first by a Spanish club - Messi scaled bigger heights in the next season.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup winner contributed an impressive 47 goals and 22 assists in six competitions, winning four of them, including La Liga, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.
It meant that Lionel Messi usurped his FIFA World Cup-winning Barcelona teammates like Xavi and Iniesta to win back-to-back Ballon d'Or awards.