Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) superstar Lionel Messi picked up his record seventh Ballon d'Or in a stunning ceremony in France moments earlier. After getting his hands on the prized accolade, the Argentine great was quick to acknowledge Robert Lewandowski, who finished second in the Ballon d'Or rankings after missing out on the prize last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It's been an honor to compete with Robert Lewandowski for the Ballon d'Or, he deserved to win the award last year."
"I want to tell Robert [Lewandowski] that it is an honour for me to compete with him," declared Messi upon receiving his trophy.
"You deserve your Ballon d'Or. Last year everyone agreed that you were the winner. I think France Football should give you your Ballon d'Or and [you should] have it as you deserved it.
"I hope France Football can give it to you so you can have it in your house, because you were the just winner. You have to have it in your house."
Messi won the Copa America with Argentina in 2021, his first trophy at international level, as well as picking up the Copa del Rey with Barcelona and finishing top scorer in LaLiga Santander.
"It is incredible to be here again," said Messi.
"Two years ago, I said that it was my last years,and that I didn't know what was going to happen, and now I am here again.
"After that they began to ask me when I was going to retire and today I am in Paris. I am very happy and very excited, eager to continue fighting for new challenges.
"I don't know how much I have left, but I hope it's a lot, because I love this. Other times I won this award and I always had the feeling that something was missing.
"I felt gutted about something, and this year I was able to achieve the dream that I wanted so much [to achieve] after having fought and having gone through many falls.
"This award is largely because of what we [Argentina] did in the Copa America."
Messi was presented with the Ballon d'Or trophy by former Barcelona teammate and close friend Luis Suarez, as he got his hands on the trophy for the first time in PSG colors. The diminutive Argentine is undoubtedly one of the greatest footballers of all time and enhanced his reputation further with another historic scalp.
Lewandowski might have missed out on the Ballon d'Or, but he became the inaugural winner of France Football's Striker of the Year award. Gianluigi Donnarumma bagged the Yashin Trophy, while Barcelona youngster Pedri got his hands on the Kopa Trophy.
As for the Women's Ballon d'Or, Barcelona Femeni star Alexia Putellas was adjudged the winner after a stunning season for the Catalan giants.
Messi thanks fans across the world for their unwavering support after winning 7th Ballon d'Or
After getting his hands on the Ballon d'Or for the seventh time, Lionel Messi was quick to thank his family, teammates and everyone close to him, while he also thanked his fans across the world for their support. He hasn't been in the best of form since moving to PSG, but his role in Argentina's Copa America triumph is believed to have turned the tide in his favor ahead of Lewandowski.
Messi is the first player in history to win the Ballon d'Or seven times and has now won the award at least twice more than any player in history.
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