dyton mupawaenda
Sharuko on Saturday
ALOIS Bunjira feels Erling Haaland was ROBBED when the 2023 Ballon d’Or was handed to Lionel Messi on Monday night.
And, he is not the only one.
There is a raging army of fans who feel football betrayed its founding principles of Fair Play and conspired to FIX the result of the global poll in Messi’s favour.
They are furious because they feel betrayed by what they argue effectively became a popularity contest rather than one based on the virtues of excellence.
It’s easy to understand their concerns.
For 67 years, the Ballon d’Or has earned its reputation as an iconic award, which honours the finest footballer in the world.
However, for decades, it was trapped in a quagmire of archaic rules, which secluded other worthy winners, leaving it battling to earn global approval.
Pele didn’t win the Ballon d’Or and neither did Diego Maradona.
They were elbowed out by some Stone Age rules which, back then, only allowed footballers of European descent to be eligible for the gong.
So, in a way, controversy has never been far away and this week’s drama is no exception.
I can understand the outrage, from the likes of Bunjira, because we might not see another season, from a young footballer, like the one the Norwegian had during the period under review.
And, when one considers this was his rookie season with Manchester City, where he was filling the big shoes left by Sergio Aguero, one can understand why this was really special.
A staggering 35 goals in 35 games in the Premiership and 11 goals in 11 games in the Champions League, is the stuff of dreams.
Four goals in four games, in the FA Cup, two goals in two games, in the EFL Cup, for a total of 52 goals, in 53 matches, is absolutely staggering.
Then, you add the leading role he played in helping City win the Treble — the League, Champions League and FA Cup — it’s hard to find a player with better statistics in the world.
HAALAND, THE TREBLE, THE SUPER SEASON
Manchester City won a Champions League tournament in which Messi’s Paris Saint-Germain, with Neymar and Kyllian Mbappe in tow, could only reach the Round of 16.
The Parisians were humiliated 0-3 by Bayern Munich in that round.
In contrast, Haaland and his City thrashed the other Germany representatives, RB Leipzig, 8-1 on aggregate, in the same round.
The same Bayern, which hammered Messi and Company, suffered a 1-4 aggregate battering, in the quarter-finals, at the hands of Haaland and City.
Then, City humiliated Real Madrid 5-1 in the semi-finals, on their way to winning the tournament.
However, one BIG question should be asked — was City’s Treble a one-man affair or the product of a super team?
Or, would City still have won the Treble without Harland’s contribution?
Probably no, possibly yes!
They would probably have won the Champions League semi-final and final, even without Haaland, because he didn’t score in those matches.
But, would Argentina have won the World Cup without Messi?
Definitely NO!
And, chances are that they would have even failed to qualify.
Just for the record, there were THREE City players in the top FIVE of the Ballon d’Or voting — Halaand (two), KDB (four) and Rodri (five).
All their votes came from City’s success story, which means this was a product of an all-round team work rather than just a single individual.
There are only two Argentine players in the top 10, Messi and Julian Alvarez (seven) and a big chunk of Julian’s votes, too, came from his City performances, which aided Haaland’s success.
There are SIX City players in the top 14 -Haaland, KDB, Rodri, Alvarez, Bernardo Silva and Ikay Gundogan.
That’s what teamwork does.
Messi scored 37 goals in 53 games, provided 25 assists and won Ligue 1 and the World Cup.
It’s easy, from a distance, to try and belittle what Messi did in Qatar and begin to reduce it to battles found in the leagues, the FA Cup, the Carabao Cup or even the Champions League.
It’s easy to forget that for Messi, this wasn’t just a World Cup but the final shot to try and seal his greatness.
It’s also easy to forget that the punishing weight of doing so can even destroy the finest of athletes.
Instead, Messi chose not to be buried by the weight of the challenge and transformed himself into the heart, soul and spirit of his country’s success in Qatar.
He was player of the match in five of the seven matches Argentina played at the World Cup.
He won the best player of the tournament and became the first player to score in every round, in the tourney’s current format.
It doesn’t mean that winning the World Cup should provide a guarantee to win the Ballon d’Or.
However, there is a huge difference between winning the World Cup and winning it the way Messi did in Qatar.
This was his Argentina team, without him, they would have struggled to even qualify for the World Cup, let alone winning it.
MESSI ALSO TOOK HOME SPORT’S BEST GONG
When you score twice, in the World Cup final, and in the process ensure that the only man to score a hat-trick, in such a game in 56 years, ends up on the losers’ side, then you know it’s really special.
This isn’t like scoring against RB Leipzig, Bournemouth or Crystal Palace because, at the World Cup, teams don’t routinely concede eight goals in a battle.
Neither is it about, in today’s world, scoring against the pathetic effigy of Manchester United, which Eric Ten Hag has been parading, while fooling the world that these are the real Red Devils.
This was about carrying the hopes of 45 million Argentines, who had been waiting for the World Cup for 36 years, and delivering for them when it matters most.
This was about trying to find a way to match Diego Maradona, by winning his people a World Cup, and succeeding in doing so, not as just another member of the team, but as its spearhead.
How does one try to match what Maradona did in ’86?
Seasoned pundits will tell you that it’s impossible and it will never happen.
But, Messi came close to doing that in Qatar last year.
And, when that happens, such phenomenal feats should not be reduced to be compared with statistics like the number of goals scored in a season, even if those goals are more than half-a-century.
Maradona needed that magical goal against England in Mexico to cement his superstardom.
And, when such immortality is created, you don’t compare it with goals scored elsewhere, even if the number of those goals get to half-a-tonne.
In May this year, Messi became the first footballer to singularly win the Laureus World Sports Awards.
His success was purely based on his performance and achievements at the World Cup.
Three years ago, when he won the same award, he shared it with Lewis Hamilton.
This is a bigger award than the Ballon d’Or because it brings together all sporting disciplines and has been won in the past by the likes of Usain Bolt, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
Now, if the other sporting disciplines, from tennis to cricket, from Formula One to rugby union, can agree that Messi was the best, why should football disown its own and question his status as the King?
But, there is something we all seem to agree on – that Peter Drury is the best football commentator in the world today.
So, let’s for a moment, listen to the motion picture soundtrack he provided for Messi when he finally won the World Cup.
“Lionel Messi has conquered his final peak, the little boy from Rosario, Santa Fe, has just pitched up in heaven and he has shaken hands with paradise.
“He climbs into a galaxy of his own, he has his crowning moment, he was beautiful, he was the point of difference.
“But, as he falls in love with the object in the world that his heart most desired, it is hard to escape the supposition that he has rendered himself today, the GREATEST OF ALL-TIME.”
So, in Peter Drury’s assessment, Messi, for everything he has done, needed this World Cup vintage show, and triumph, to cement his status as the GOAT.
If that was enough to cement Messi’ immortality, then it was enough to win Messi the Ballon d’Or?
Rather than spend the next year arguing whether Messi deserved the Ballon d’Or, we should pick some vital lessons.
That these awards of excellence are not about the footballer with the best disciplinary record.
Messi was suspended for TWO weeks by PSG for an unauthorised commercial trip to Saudi Arabia in May but still won the Ballon d’Or.
Peter Muduhwa was suspended by the PSL and, just like that, will not be considered for the Soccer Star of the Year.
To God Be The Glory!
Peace to the GEPA Chief, the Big Fish, George Norton, Daily Service, Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and all the Chakariboys still in the struggle.
Come on United!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Brunoooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Text Feedback 0772545199
WhatsApp 0772545199
Email – [email protected]
You can also interact with me on Twitter (@Chakariboy), Facebook, Instagram (sharukor) and Skype (sharuko58) and Game Plan is back and you can interact with me and my colleague CHARLES “CNN” MABIKA every Wednesday on ZTV.
Online Reporter