Lionel Messi, in making his acceptance speech for his seventh Ballon d’Or, was insistent that Bayern Munich forward Robert Lewandowski should be awarded the 2020 Ballon d’Or.
On Monday evening, in a sudden and totally unexpected turnaround that stunned many in the football world, the PSG attacker edged out the Poland international and all other contenders to win his seventh Golden Orb. This is despite many firmly believing that Lewandowski’s goal-scoring exploits across all competitions last season should have led to him eclipsing Messi on this occasion.
However, Messi graciously used his speech to prep up and laud Lewandowski’s achievements from the previous year, lamenting the frontman ultimately missing out when the awards were scrapped due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Argentine said: “Robert, you deserve your Ballon d’Or. Last year, everyone was in agreement to say that you were the big winner of this award.
“Hopefully France Football will give you the 2020 Ballon d’Or. We all believe you deserved it and I hope you can have it at home.”
Lewandowski netted 47 goals from 44 matches, helping Bayern Munich to yet another Bundesliga crown and the Champions League.