Sadio Mane has had a remarkable year for both club
and country but finished fourth in the 2019 Ballon d'Or vote, which Messi terms
"a shame". The 27-year-old Senegal and Liverpool forward spearheaded
the Reds to their first UEFA Champions League title since 2005 and finished
runner-up with Senegal in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. He was also the
Premier League's joint Golden Boot winner. Barcelona legend Lionel Messi won
the Ballon d'Or for a record sixth time. He revealed Mane was his top choice
for The Best FIFA Men's Player earlier in September.
"It’s a shame to see Mane finish in fourth
place.
"But I think there have been a lot of great
players this year. That's why it was difficult to choose a particular player.
But I chose Sadio Mane because he's a player that I like.
"Mane achieved a great year that was
exceptional for the entire Liverpool team. That's why I chose him. I
repeat, there were a lot of very great players this year, so the choice was
difficult," Messi said in his exchange with Canal+.
The winner of the Ballon d'Or is determined by
votes from journalists across the globe. Messi beat runner-up Virgil van Dijk by a
narrow margin; he had 24.4% of the votes and Van Dijk, 24.1%. For the first
time since 2010, Ronaldo failed to finish in the top two in the Ballon d'Or
ranking.
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