Superstar Lionel Messi and his 8th Golden Ball close out a great era

Before the 2023 Golden Ball award ceremony took place, West Ham striker Michail Antonio affirmed that if striker Erling Haaland did not win, it would be a “scandal”. Striker Callum Wilson (Newcastle) also agreed with this opinion and declared that Haaland deserved to be honored.

However, the final winner as we all know is superstar Lionel Messi. Is the 36-year-old striker’s recent award a “scandal” as Antonio described. According to Goal, the answer is no.

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By shining at the 2022 World Cup and bringing the championship to Argentina, Messi completely deserves to be honored.

Former midfielder Eden Hazard used the word “reasonable” to describe Messi winning the award. “No one deserves to win this award more than Messi. It’s illogical that you don’t give the Golden Ball to the greatest player in history in the year he won the World Cup. If France wins the 2022 World Cup, Mbappe will win the golden ball”, Hazard commented.

French football legend Thierry Henry also said that the race to win the Golden Ball would be different if the home team could overcome Argentina in the World Cup final. And everything is clear now. When a CBS reporter asked who deserved this year’s Golden Ball title, Henry answered briefly: “Messi. That’s it.”

When the ceremony ended, Haaland (Silver Ball) and Mbappe (Bronze Ball) both congratulated Messi on the victory. This can be seen as a move by the duo to implicitly confirm that Messi is worthy of the 8th title.

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“I couldn’t ask for anything more”

Many people believe that Messi’s number of Golden Balls will stop at 8. This opinion is not unfounded. Messi is now 36 years old and no longer plays football in major European tournaments.

Therefore, to be honored with the Golden Ball title, Messi needs to do something “extremely special”. In fact, the Messi – Ronaldo era is behind us. We are welcoming a new generation of stars with Haaland, Mbappe and even Jude Bellingham.

Of course, we cannot completely ignore Messi, the superstar who has created countless miracles in world football over the years. The pinnacle is none other than the World Cup championship at the end of last year.

“Obviously, I want to complete my career with this title – I couldn’t ask for anything more,” Messi shared after helping Argentina defeat France in the 2022 World Cup final. “After This title, what else do I need? I already have a Copa America, a World Cup.”

Can Messi win his 9th Golden Ball?

At this stage of his career, Messi admits that he plays football with ease, without any pressure. The Argentine superstar is expected to rest before waiting for the new season in the US to start again in February 2024. After that, Messi and the whole team attended the Copa America in the summer.

If Argentina can win this tournament, Messi may appear on the Golden Ball nomination list. However, if the above scenario occurs, the chance of Messi owning the 9th award is still very small.

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Leaving top football will certainly affect Messi’s votes. In 2023, Messi, with the World Cup championship, successfully surpassed Haaland – who once won the treble. However, the World Cup is on a completely different scale than the playground with only South American teams like the Copa America.

With Messi going to the US to play football and Ronaldo and a series of other stars moving to Saudi Arabia, fans are now paying more attention to tournaments outside of Europe. However, the possibility of a player no longer playing in Europe winning the Golden Ball title is very small. Messi in 2023 is no exception. The Argentine superstar won his 8th award for his performance while playing for PSG.

Messi – the symbol of world football

Perhaps the race for the 2023 Golden Ball officially ended the moment Messi touched the World Cup golden trophy. It’s been a long time since fans have witnessed such an impressive individual performance at a short cup tournament.

Man City owned a “divine” treble last season and is the best club in the world at the moment. Pep Guardiola – the team’s coach – also admitted that Haaland can hardly compete with Messi. “I think this title should have two awards: one for Messi and one for the rest. Why? Because Messi’s worst season is still the best compared to the rest”.

Messi may not be able to win his 9th Golden Ball title, but that no longer matters to the 36-year-old player at the moment. At the end of last year, Messi won the biggest title of his career and the recent Golden Ball was just an added bonus.

Messi completed his trophy collection in Qatar. Goal believes that is also the time when the controversy about who is the best player in history officially ended.