Ronaldo Shuns Messi In Next Ballon d’Or Competition

Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed five players who will contend with him for the Ballon D’Or this year.

The Portuguese ace mentioned the names of the players to a French media outfit, France Football, and his closest rival, Lionel Messi’s name was not there.

Instead the former Real Madrid star mentioned Mohamed Salah, Luka Modric, Antoine Griezmann, Raphael Varane and Kylian Mbappe as the five players to look out for.

“The rivals? The same as usual, although I do not know if Messi will be on the podium this time,” Ronaldo said.

“So let’s say Salah, Modric, Griezmann, Varane, Mbappe, and the French in general because they are world champions.”

Croatia star Luka Modric ended the Ronaldo-Messi ten-year reign when he won FIFA’s The Best award in September.

The Madrid play-maker had a terrific year for club and country as he won the Champions League with Los Blancos and reached the finals of the World Cup with his country.

On the other hand, Barcelona’s Messi also enjoyed an individual year, winning La Liga and created the most assist in the season for his team.

But Argentina’s disappointing showing at the World Cup could cause a setback for the 31-year-old after his side crashed out in the round of 16 to France.