Cristiano Ronaldo has been tipped to win the Ballon d’Or by one of the most unexpected figures in the world of football – Neymar. The Brazil captain believes that his Portuguese counterpart is ‘very close’ to winning the coveted global award, thanks to his double trophy haul this year. Ronaldo scored the winning penalty as Real Madrid clinched the Champions League title in May, and also steered his country Portugal to Euro 2016 glory in July.
CR7 kisses the Champions League trophy on May , 28 after Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid in the finals of the competition
The 31-year-old celebrates winning the European Championship in France
In an interview with Lance, the 24-year-old was asked about Ronaldo’s chance of winning the best player in the world award. This was his response:
''Conquering trophies counts for a lot.
''He won the Champions League and now the Euros. He’s very close [to the Ballon d’Or]. Cristiano is a great player, I’m not hesitant on this.''
Neymar was nominated for last year’s Ballon d’Or alongside his Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi and rival Cristiano Ronaldo. But the former Santos man finished third as Leo was declared the best player in the world. The last eight Ballon d’Or awards have gone either Ronaldo’s or Messi’s way.
Here is a quick preview of the last eight Ballon d'Or winners:
2008: Cristiano Ronaldo
2009: Lionel Messi
2010: Lionel Messi
2011: Lionel Messi
2012: Lionel Messi
2013: Cristiano Ronaldo
2014: Cristiano Ronaldo
2015: Lionel Messi
CR7 will have to fight competition from his annual rival Lionel Messi as he aims to win his fourth Ballon d’Or. The former Man United man ended the season with 35 league goals, compared to Messi’s 26 and Neymar’s 24. However, the Argentine’s season was marred by injuries despite steering Los Blaugrana to the La Liga and Copa del Rey titles.
WATCH: The story of Ronaldo's Euro 2016 journey
