Lionel Messi is waiting to discover if he is to become the first man
to land a fourth Ballon d’Or when the winner of the prestigious award is
announced in Zurich on Monday evening.
Messi, who has won the
prize for the last three years running, joins Real Madrid’s Cristiano
Ronaldo and Barcelona team-mate Andrés Iniesta on the 2012 shortlist.
The
25-year-old Argentina international finished the year with a staggering
91 goals to his name for club and country after breaking Gerd Mueller’s
40-year-old record of having netted the most strikes in a calendar
year.
Mueller was full of praise for the diminutive Argentine after seeing Messi surpass his tally of 85 goals from 1972.
“My
record stood for 40 years – 85 goals in 60 games – and now the best
player in the world has broken it,” said Mueller. “I’m delighted for
him. He is an incredible player. He’s such a nice and modest
professional, and I hope he gets one or two more goals in 2012 and that
he can then hold on to the record for the next 40 years.”
Odds-on
favourite Messi, however, faces stiff competition from Real Madrid star
Ronaldo, whose 46 league goals last season helped fire Los Blancos to
their 32nd La Liga title. Ronaldo also scored three of Portugal’s six
goals at last summer’s European championship as they reached the
semi-finals.
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