Ronaldo Nazario has made an early call for this year’s Ballon d’Or crown title and claimed that he has faced ‘criticism’ for holding the view in the past.
In November, Paris Saint-Germain superstar Lionel Messi landed a record-breaking seventh Ballon d'Or title by scooping the 2021 accolade before ranking second behind Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski in the 2021 FIFA Best Men's Player awards. However, former Brazil striker Ronaldo does not believe either play should win the 2022 gong.
Instead, Ronaldo believes Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema should be winning the title. A quickfire second half hat-trick from Benzema eliminated Paris Saint-Germain in a remarkable Champions League Round of 16 comeback described as "magic" by home boss Carlo Ancelotti before bagging another treble against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge at the quarter final stage.
In an interview which has partially been published by Marca, Ronaldo has called on the French striker to win this year’s individual prize – and believes that it is several years in the marking. “Karim deserves the Ballon d'Or, I've been saying it for years and they've criticized me... but he deserves it, he's a great striker.”
Benzema has netted 124 goals in just shy of four seasons since becoming the central striker in the Spanish capital and has been the best player in La Liga in recent seasons. He returned to the France international squad for this summer’s European Championships after a five-year absence and has netted nine goals in 13 caps since returning for Les Bleus.
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Benzema revealed in October how landing the gong had always been a dream for him: "Since I was little, I have had the dream of winning the Ballon d'Or, which is the dream that all footballers have. It is true that the most important thing is always the team, but when you help your team to win, when you are involved in important plays and score a lot of goals, the next thing is to win the Ballon d'Or, which in my head and in my thoughts. Of course, I am going to do everything possible and I am going to work as hard as possible to have that great trophy, to hopefully win it one day and fulfil that dream that I have had since I was a child."
Benzema joined Real Madrid from Lyon in the summer of 2009, the same year that Ronaldo moved to the Spanish capital from Manchester United. Much of his first decade at the club saw Benzema used as a foil for the Portuguese superstar, who netted a club record 450 goals in 438 appearances. Benzema was often deployed on the right-side of a three-man attack and was primarily involved in build-up play rather than scoring, but Ronaldo’s exit has allowed him to flourish. He has scored 433 goals across his senior club and international career.
