Pep Guardiola defends Lionel Messi. The Manchester City coach, who worked with Messi at Barcelona for years, does not think the seventh Ballon d’Or is ‘unjustified’ for his former pupil. At the press conference ahead of the Manchester City v Aston Villa game, Guardiola says Messi showed ‘too many good things’ not to deserve the Ballon d’Or, although he understands why many football fans believe Robert Lewandowski was entitled to the price.
“Don’t ask me about that, it is what it is,” Guardiola’s first response to a question about the Ballon d’Or. Then he elaborates. “You can never say that Lionel Messi has wrongly won the Ballon d’Or. He has shown too many good things on the pitch for that.” The trainer thinks the Ballon d’Or gala is mainly ‘a show to make football more attractive’. “Alexia, Pedri and Leo deserve a big compliment”, he refers to Ballon d’Or Féminin winner Alèxia Putellas and Kopa Trophy winner Pedri, the best player and the greatest talent respectively. “The same goes for the winners of all the awards.”
“I am not the person to decide whether Messi deserves it or not. It is never unfair if he wins the award. It would also have been fair if Lewandowski had won, because of all his goals and qualities,” Guardiola emphasized. “The four or five biggest contenders are all so good, and have had such fantastic seasons with their teams, that they all deserve it.” Lionel Messi finished at the top with 613 points; Lewandowski followed close behind with 580 points. Jorginho (460), Karim Benzema (239) and N’Golo Kanté (186) rounded out the top five.
Ballon d’Or points numbers: Messi narrowly ahead of Lewandowski
The full ranking of the Ballon d’Or election was announced on Monday evening.
Manchester City’s highest-ranking player was Kevin De Bruyne in eighth place. During the press conference, Guardiola also receives questions about the attacking midfielder, who tested positive for the corona virus after the international break. He now tests negative again, but De Bruyne will not play at Aston Villa on Wednesday. “He has indeed tested negative, but he was not able to train yet,” said Guardiola. “Kevin will come back. He needs some time to get back to his old self. All players affected by corona complain of fatigue and need time. Kevin must be top fit to show his qualities.”