IN the year that the Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo should have been given a sixth Balon D’or, the honour was bestowed on his ex-team mate Luca Modric. Modric, the player of the tournament at the 2018 World Cup, was recognized for his heroics at the global fiesta, where Ronaldo himself had put in a phenomenal performance but had bowed out with his team earlier on. However, had the story been reversed, Ronaldo’s rival Lionel Messi would have been given the award outright. In shutting out Ronaldo, the organizers claimed that it was time to look beyond Messi and Ronaldo. As it turned out, however, this was only a gimmick. When the Polish superstar Robert Lewandowski took the world by storm, the organizers completely ignored him, gifting the award to Messi. It was a robbery that bordered on comedy. Today, Lewandowski, who should have been a two-time Balon D’or winner, has none to his name. Officialdom dotes on Lionel Messi because of his oft-trumpeted humility, but awards are supposed to be principally about achievements, not personality. If you think this is “another excuse by a salty Cristiano Ronaldo fan,” you had better skip to the next page.
I return to the Modric story for a moment. In a fit of gross irrationality, the Real Madrid star was decorated as the Player of the Tournament in the Champions League, an award that should have gone to Ronaldo without question. For whereas Modric had put in a superlative performance at the World Cup, it was Ronaldo that had proved, much more than ever before, why he should be called Mr. Champions League. He had won Man of the Match awards in more than half of the matches he had featured in. But the organizers, because of blind hatred, chose to give the award to Modric. But that was not all: Ronaldo’s insane overhead kick against Juventus, possibly the greatest ever goal in the Champions League considering the goalkeeper stunned, the stage of the competition and the height reached before the strike, was ignored and an otherwise ordinary goal by Liverpool lion Mo Salah was awarded the year’s gong.
Just how could a player who scored 15 goals in 13 appearances and won serial Man of the Match awards have been ignored for a lesser player? What then is the value of the Man of the Match awards? To cap off their buffoonery and knowing how blatant their robbery of Ronaldo had been, the organizers attached a hitherto non-existent title, Forward of the Season, to his name. On the sidelines, they found a fake rape tag to pin on the Portuguese. Indeed, I cannot fathom why officialdom hates Ronaldo this much! It is hatred at an insane level! If Ronaldo has five Balon D’or awards, it is because the organizers couldn’t help it. After all, a FIFA president openly disparaged the Portuguese, proving that he was not being judged for what he did on the pitch but for his personality.
Now let’s talk briefly about the World Cup. I can only laugh at the people mocking CR7 for his lack of a World Cup trophy. The ignorance borders on comedy. Liberia’s George Weah has a Balon D’or to his name but no AFCON trophy. Why? His nation. Although Portugal, largely courtesy of Ronaldo, is a Euros winner, the fact is that it cannot stand shoulder to shoulder with nations such as France, Italy or Spain. And it is no match for Argentina, Germany or Brazil. Were Ronaldo from France, Italy, Spain or Brazil, surely he would have more than a World Cup win. This opinion can only be doubted by ignoramuses. I notice something, though: Portugal is gradually building up to a World Cup win. It may take eight years, but it will surely come. And once the jinx is broken, it would be in a position to fight for another title.
I take nothing away from Messi’s genius, but Argentina had a lot of official help at Qatar 2022. It was given questionable penalties all through, and Messi’s goal against France at the final should not have stood. That is not to say he is not deserving of a World Cup win: teams that win the World Cup and the Champions League often have “official help” in the way outlined here. Maradona scored a handed goal at the World Cup, and Real Madrid, Barcelona, etc, have all benefitted from football politics on the way to their Champions League triumph.
Then I come to Ronaldo and the media. It is really hard being Cristiano. For two decades, the media has venerated Messi and crucified Ronaldo at every given opportunity. Ronaldo was criticized even when he lost a child. There is an article supposedly about Ronaldo which had more mentions of the name Messi! In this regard, I must single out the propaganda outfit called ESPN. Knowing that Ronaldo’s name generates traffic, this hideous outfit has made money for decades disparaging Ronaldo. Portugal were given a soft penalty that Ronaldo converted at Qatar, but then you have to see the ESPN pundits talking about it! One of them almost had a heart attack, shouting himself hoarse over the penalty. It was clear that it wasn’t the penalty that was at issue but Ronaldo. Finally, I really wonder at the bad boy tag on Ronaldo. He donates his blood to save lives, and would be found after Champions League matches taking pictures with physically challenged people. The good thing, though, is that football fans recognize the bias, and have stuck with the man who had 450 goals in 438 appearances for Real Madrid.
My birthday
I was born on a Saturday, December 24, and today is Saturday, December 24. It’s been a tortuous journey but I’ve been blessed.
Re: The ruckus in Osun
Great work. I look forward always to reading your column(Windows) every weekend in Saturday Tribune. After reading the last one entitled: The ruckus in Osun, I cannot but wonder the kind of Democracy we practise in Nigeria. How can an outgoing government not prepare comprehensive and detailed handing over notes for the incoming administration? Just as you have rightly observed, because Gboyega Oyetola lost the election for 2nd term in office, he couldn’t be bothered about doing the right thing before leaving office. O ga o. But is it not constitutional, mandatory and compulsory for an outgoing government to prepare comprehensive and detailed handing over notes for the incoming government?
Gboyega Sani, Lagos (08052254329).
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