The year 2023 witnesses another unprecedented record for Lionel Messi when the Argentine superstar wins the “Golden Ball” title for the 8th time in his career. The 36-year-old striker is 3 goals ahead of second place and his great rival for many years, Cristiano Ronaldo.

 

Messi won the “Golden Ball” title for the 8th time voted by France Football

Previously, Messi won this title in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019 and 2021. The Argentine superstar was very emotional when receiving the award.

“It’s a pleasure to be here again to enjoy this moment. Thank you to everyone, especially my teammates. Thank you to everyone who voted for me. This Golden Ball is A great gift for all Argentines.”

The question is whether Messi is worthy of being honored by France Football for the 8th time? The answer is yes and it must be said that it is extremely worthy. The 36-year-old superstar is the brightest star at the 2022 World Cup with 7 goals and 3 assists.

In particular, Messi scored an important double in the final to help Argentina defeat Kylian Mbappe’s France team. That top performance made everyone believe that Messi would win the “2023 Golden Ball” because the 2022 World Cup is one of the most important events in the football world after Covid-19 and that has come true. .

In addition, the Argentine superstar also played very well in the PSG shirt in the 2022/23 season, scoring and assisting both reaching 16 goals. That is not an easy number to achieve in one of Europe’s leading national championships.

Haaland only won the “Silver Ball” title despite playing very well

In fact, not everyone agrees with Messi winning the “Golden Ball” title for the 8th time. Many opinions say that Erling Haaland deserves more than his senior in this race. The Norwegian striker played extremely well in his first season with Man City, scoring 52 goals/53 matches and winning a historic treble (Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League).

West Ham striker Michail Antonio is one of the strongest voices on this issue. According to this striker, Haaland not winning the “Golden Ball” award is a scandal and Messi has been overly favored.

However, extremely convincing objections were quickly given. First, Messi won the “2023 Golden Ball” from the votes of 100 reputable journalists from 100 countries around the world, not the subjective judgment of France Football magazine. According to the voting results, Messi received 462 points, much better than Erling Haaland (357 points).

Second, journalists vote according to criteria given by the organizers, not randomly. The year 2023 has many changes compared to previous years. If according to the old criteria, Julian Alvarez is even “better” than Erling Haaland because this striker is better than his teammate at Man City with the 2022 World Cup championship. 

Of course, controversy always happens but there is something that cannot be denied. That Lionel Messi is truly outstanding not only in 2023 but over the past decade. Enjoying the Argentinian superstar playing football is one of the luckiest things in the football world.