Thierry Henry insists Lionel Messi should win the Ballon d’Or over Erling Haaland after leading Argentina to World Cup glory in December: ‘You can’t say that it isn’t deserved if he wins it’
- Lionel Messi won the Ballon d’Or in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019 and 2021
- Messi scored 7 goals in Argentina’s incredible run to win the World Cup in Qatar
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With the Ballon d’Or winner set to be announced in a ceremony on Monday, football personalities are chiming in on who deserves to take the golden ball home this year.
CBS Sports football analyst Thierry Henry named Lionel Messi as his pick on Wednesday.
‘I mean a lot of people can debate that but for me if you win the World Cup, the way he did it, we can talk about what happened in the final,’ the former Arsenal and France star said on CBS Sports. ‘As a Frenchman, I was a little bit disappointed with how it finished but you can’t say that it isn’t deserved if he wins it.’
Henry, 46, went on about why the Argentina and Inter Miami forward deserves the coveted award for his heroics at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in December.
‘A lot of people can claim that Man City players, Haaland and some other players can also say “why not me?” but you can’t say that it’s not right if he wins it. You have the history at times where I’m thinking about Lewandowski, they decided to say there will not be a Ballon d’Or but there was football. Why was the guy not allowed to win his Ballon d’Or?’
Argentina’s Lionel Messi won the Ballon d’Or in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019 and 2021
CBS Sports football analyst Thierry Henry insists that Messi should win the award on Monday
The forward led Argentina to glory at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar last December
Messi’s biggest competitor for the award this year is 23-year-old Manchester City forward Erling Haaland.
After leaving Borussia Dortmund to join the English side in 2022, the Norwegian phenom immediately became the spark of City’s offense. Haaland scored a record-breaking 52 goals for the club last season, leading City to their first treble.
Meanwhile, Messi captained Argentina towards the World Cup in Qatar, scoring seven goals including two in the dramatic final against France. Following the World Cup, Messi left Paris Saint-Germain in a record-breaking deal to join Inter Miami CF in MLS.
Within two months, Messi led Miami to their first club trophy, winning the inaugural Leagues Cup. He also took his side to the US Open Cup final but lost to the Houston Dynamo.
While the 36-year-old previously won the Ballon d’Or on seven different occasions, Henry remained adamant that Messi deserves to win his eighth.
When directly asked by fellow pundit Jamie Carragher who he thinks should win the Ballon d’Or on Monday, Henry made his answer short and simple.
‘For me, Messi. Bye. Over.’
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