French football legend Franck Ribery recalled the 2013 Ballon d’Or ceremony as an evening of injustice.
The former Bayern Munich winger still feels that he did a better job than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to win the mega title of being the ‘best player of that season/year’.
Ribery said: “It was the perfect year. I couldn’t have done better. That Ballon d’Or will forever remain an injustice.”
Alongside Arjen Robben, Ribery led Bayern to dominate Europe. In the 2012-13 season, Bayern won the treble. It was Bayern’s first-ever Champions League title in the 21st century.
Ribery not only led Bayern to win the treble but also made sure that the German giants won the Super Cup and the FIFA World Cup.
He scored 22 goals and 18 assists, winning UEFA’s Best Player in Europe award. However, he came third when it comes to picking the Ballon d’Or Winner in 2013 behind winner Cristiano Ronaldo and second-placed Lionel Messi.
However, back then, both Messi and Ronaldo were scoring a lot of goals. This could have been the biggest reason behind these legends getting more votes than the former French international.
But in terms of winning major titles, Ribery was way ahead of these two greats.
2013 Ballon d’Or Top 3
- Winner: Cristiano Ronaldo – 1365 votes
- Second: Lionel Messi – 1205 votes
- Third: Franck Ribery – 1127
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