Dani Alves has claimed former Tottenham midfielder Christian Eriksen should have won this year’s Ballon d’Or award over Lionel Messi.
The Paris Saint-Germain winger scooped up the award for the best player in world football for a seventh time after pushing Argentina all the way to the Copa America crown in the summer.
Messi edged out Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski to the prize, despite the Poland international posting yet another stellar campaign in front of goal for the German outfit.
However, the decision has been challenged by Messi’s long-time Barcelona teammate Alves, who feels Eriksen should have claimed this year’s award after battling through a year full of adversity.
The ex-Spurs playmaker suffered a cardiac arrest while representing Denmark against Finland during a Euro 2020 group game in the summer.
Although he is in a stable condition and continuing to recover, the Inter Milan midfielder’s career is still very much in doubt with question marks still lingering as to whether he can play at the top level again.
As such, Alves believes Eriksen should have won the Ballon d’Or for reasons ‘more important than football’.
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After the awards, he said (via Football.London): “I think that Messi is a big candidate for the Ballon d’Or. He has [registered] all the figures to make it another time.
“But, to be honest, this year for me all the individual awards should have been handed to Eriksen because we have to send a message to the world that life is more important than football.
“And when one person comes back as he did, after all the things we’ve been through with COVID-19 that is ongoing and all this issue.
“I think that we can send a message to everyone that there are things which are more important than sport.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Eriksen has had such a difficult year and it is sad to think that he may not be able to play at the top level of football again. Him winning the Ballon d’Or would have been a lovely touch, but that is likely something that wouldn’t have come across the officials’ minds.
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