"I hope to equal Messi, maybe as early as next year." These are the first words of Cristiano Ronaldo, who won the 2014 Ballon d'Or, second consecutive and third overall for him after that of 2008 before the Messi era, who then brought home four in a row becoming the most successful always on an individual level.
The ace of Real Madrid and the Portuguese national team, who in the calendar year that has just ended won the Champions League with his club and played in the World Cup in Brazil, with today's affirmation instead enters the very restricted club of pursuers of the "Pulga ” argentina: with 3 Golden Balls equals Cruijff, Platini and Van Basten. But evidently he is not satisfied, given that after the circumstantial thanks (this time accompanied by emotion but not by tears) the first words were immediately addressed to the challenge for 2015, which sees him launched in the umpteenth pursuit of rival Barcelona, defeated in this edition as well as Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
In a certain sense, the engagement with Messi has already taken place this year, at least at club level: with this affirmation of Cr7, Real Madrid in fact rises to 7 Ballon d'Ors, reaching the Blaugrana just behind the two Italians Juventus and Milan, both with 8 players awarded the title. A possible victory for Neuer, as well as the second ever for a goalkeeper (after Lev Jascin in 1963), would have instead meant the first place for Germany in the rankings by nations, which they currently share with the Netherlands (7 each). . Portugal now, counting also that of Eusebio in 1965, has 4, like Argentina and only one less than Italy, Brazil and England.
