Last night, Lionel Messi received his seventh Ballon d’Or award, beating Robert Lewandowski and Jorginho to the coveted golden ball.
The man himself admitted that Lewandowski deserved to win, but even still, Messi was in otherworldly form with 38 goals and 14 assists last term.
He also won the Copa America, his first piece of silverware with Argentina.
At the ceremony, Messi didn’t just speak about Lewandowski – he also had some kinds words to say about Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.
What’s the story?
Surprisingly, Salah only finished seventh in the Ballon d’Or rankings, despite a remarkable season in which he almost singlehandedly fired Liverpool to third in the Premier League.
The Egypt international netted 31 goals, and recorded six assists.
Nevertheless, Messi seems to think Salah will have other chances to lift the prestigious Ballon d’Or.
As quoted by the Mirror, the Paris Saint-Germain forward said: “Salah will have opportunities in the years to come. Both players [Salah and Lewandowski] are at their best at the moment and will have more chances to win it.”
Mohamed Salah could take the crown from Lionel Messi in 2021
As of now, Salah is well on course to lift the Ballon d’Or in 2021.
He has already scored 17 goals this season, as Liverpool find themselves firmly in the Premier League title race.
Salah’s efforts have also helped the Reds win all five of their Champions League games so far.
Should Liverpool win one of these trophies, and Salah continues to score at the rate he currently is, he would surely be a shoe-in for the award.
If the £200,000-a-week man wins both, it would be a travesty if he didn’t receive the Ballon d’Or.
Hopefully, Salah uses his seventh place finish as motivation to have an even better campaign this time around.
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