Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo Named As Chelsea Stars Dominate 30-Man Shortlist for Ballon d’Or 2021

• Lionel Messi is on course to win his seventh Ballon d’Or title as the Argentine has been named in a 30-man shortlist for the prestigious award this year
• Fierce rival Cristiano Ronaldo who has won the coveted individual prize five times is also a strong contender as he makes the list
• Chelsea stars Jorginho and N’Golo Kante are also named on the shortlist which has players like Robert Lewandowski and Erling Haaland

A 30-man shortlist for the prestigious 2021 Ballon d’Or award has been released by France Football which has legendary Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Sport Skeeda reports.

This is the most sought after individual prize in football and the winner of the men’s and women’s categories will be named on November 29.

The award ceremony which has enjoyed the duo poly of Messi and Ronaldo is billed to hold at the lavish at Theatre du Chatelet in Paris.

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Only Croatian star Luka Modric has won the award apart from messi and Ronaldo since 2008, and that of last year was cancelled due to the spread of Covid-19, but many had tipped Robert Lewandowski for glory.

But this year’s award would be fiercely contested as Italy and Chelsea midfielder Jorginho is widely tipped as a leading candidate for the award after his remarkable summer with club and country.

Meanwhile, Lewandowski is fresh off the back of a record-breaking 2020-21 Bundesliga campaign, where he netted 41 goals in just 29 appearances for Bayern Munich.

The Poland international was the leading candidate for the Ballon d'Or award in 2020, but unfortunately the event was canceled due to the pandemic.

Below is the 30-man shortlist for the 2021 Ballon d’Or via Euro Sport:

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Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski, Jorginho named in top 15 favourite players for the 2021 Ballon d’Or

1. Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG)
2. Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus)
3. Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus)
4. Simon Kjær (AC Milan)
5. Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)
6. Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
7. N'Golo Kante (Chelsea)
8. Mason Mount (Chelsea)
9. Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan)
10. Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
11. Pedri (Barcelona)
12. Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
13. Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
14. Jorginho (Chelsea)
15. Phil Foden (Manchester City)
16. Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City)
17. Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund)
18. Harry Kane (Tottenham)
19. Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
20. Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)
21. Lionel Messi (PSG)
22. Neymar (PSG)
23. Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
24. Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
25. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
26. Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)
27. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
28. Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
29. Gerard Moreno (Villarreal)
30. Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid)

Ronaldo wins Premier League player of the month award

Legit.ng earlier reported that Cristiano Ronaldo has been named as the Premier League player for the month of September following his impressive performances for the Red Devils since he returned to Old Trafford.

After spending three years at Italian giants Juventus, Cristiano Ronaldo decided to make a return to the Premier League which made Manchester United fans happy.

And in the month of September, Cristiano Ronaldo netted three Premier League goals and has scored five so far for Manchester United which is an incredible show.

Source: YEN.com.gh