Pep Guardiola gave a brilliant answer when asked whether Erling Haaland deserves to win the Ballon d’Or.
During what was a stunning first season with City, Norwegian superstar Haaland scored 52 goals in 53 appearances across all competitions.
After playing a vital role in helping City win a historic treble, Guardiola was asked whether Haaland deserves to win the Ballon d’Or ahead of Lionel Messi. You can watch the footage below.
The City boss was asked: “I know you’re not a fan of individual awards in football but in 10 days we have the Ballon d’Or and there are two incredible stories.
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“Messi with Argentina and Haaland here with the treble, if you had a vote, who would you vote for?”
Guardiola replied: “Hahaha. You are so funny.
“I’ve always said, the Ballon d'Or has to be two sections. One for Messi, and after look for the others. So, Haaland should win - Yes. We won the treble and he scored 50 million goals. The worst season of Messi is the best for the rest.”
He added: “They both deserve it so what can I say?”
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Haaland’s City teammate, Rodri was recently asked who will win the illustrious award and to many people’s surprise, the Spaniard snubbed his teammate.
According to El Partidazo de COPE, Rodri said: “Who’s going to win the Ballon d’Or. For me, I think Lionel Messi is going to win it.”
Messi is the bookies’ favourite to lift his eighth Ballon d’Or after a stunning year in which he inspired Argentina to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
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During the tournament, he was named the best player after scoring seven goals.
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Topics: Pep Guardiola, Manchester City, Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi, Ballon d'Or, Football
Marcus Chan