Cristiano Ronaldo is no stranger to the Ballon d’Or.
During his glittered career, Ronaldo has won the Ballon d’Or five times.
This is part of an impressive resume for Ronaldo that includes seven league titles across three countries and five Champions Leagues.
He also won a European Championship with Portugal in 2016.
With 955 career goals, he has become one of the greatest footballers to ever play the game.
Portugal take on Spain in Sunday’s UEFA Nations League final.
This will see Ronaldo take on 17-year old teenage sensation Lamine Yamal for the first time.
This could be seen as a handing over of the baton moment, Yamal drawing comparisons with Lionel Messi.
Since his breakthrough campaign in Euro 2024, Yamal has gone from strength to strength.
He is already seen by some as the best player in the world.
This had led to many feeling he could win the Ballon d’Or this season.
However, Ronaldo does not feel that he should be the recipient of the award.
Speaking ahead of the final, he said: “Lamine Yamal is doing very well, he is taking full advantage of his talent.
”Now let the kid grow and don’t put too much pressure on him.
”Let him be and let him grow well, take the pressure off him. He has no shortage of talent.”
Instead, Ronaldo felt that the winner should go outside of the La Liga giants.
This is despite the excellent season from Raphinha.
“The individual awards have lost some consensus; I can’t say anything about who should win.
”In my opinion, those who stand out and win the Champions League should win.
”But there is no consensus. I don’t believe much in individual awards because I know what goes on behind the scenes.
”Lamine could win, like (Ousmane) Dembélé or Vitinha, other emerging players… But individual awards are irrelevant.”
It has been an excellent season for both Dembélé and Vitinha.
Last weekend, Paris Saint-Germain won their first Champions League in club history.
They won it in style in Munich, with a dominant 5-0 win over Inter Milan.
This broke the record for the biggest victory gap in any final of the tournament’s history.
Whilst Dembélé and Vitinha did not score in the final, they both played big roles in their journey to a first ever treble.
They will battle with Raphinha, Yamal and Mohammed Salah for the award.
The winner will be announced on September 22nd in Paris.
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