Ballon d'Or Winners Without Messi & Ronaldo (2008-2019)

Every now and then there's a video suggestion which I'm a little doubtful about making, but that I eventually give up and make if it keeps cropping up in the comments and getting a noticeably high number of likes. Today's video is one that falls firmly into that category, and is the suggestion of a what if video looking at the Ballon d'Or over the last 11 years of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo didn't exist. Since 2008, Messi and Ronaldo have won 11 out of a possible 12 Ballon d'Or awards on offer, with the one exception coming with Luka Modric's crowning moment in 2018. Messi has won the Ballon d'Or 6 times, Ronaldo has won it 5 times, and both players have made the top 3 every year with the exception of a 6th place finish for Ronaldo in 2010, and a 5th place finish for Messi in 2018. I could either do this video as who would have won based on who got the next most votes behind Messi and Ronaldo each year, or I could do it just based on who I think would be the worthiest winner every year, outside of those two. Since there would be a lot of crossover between those two, I'm just going to do the former, but intersperse it with my opinion here and there. Here is how the Ballon d'Or winners might have looked had Messi and Ronaldo not existed from 2008 to 2019. 2008 Fernando Torres 2007 was early the breakout season for both Messi and Ronaldo as world-class talents, and they came 2nd and 3rd respectively to Kaká in that year's Ballon d'Or voting. Both players climbed up one place in 2008 to begin their reign of Ballon d'Or dominance, as Cristiano Ronaldo won his only crown whilst at Manchester United with Messi trailing him in 2nd. Fernando Torres took 3rd place, meaning he takes top spot for the purposes of this video, and 2008 was a special year for the Spaniard. Torres scored 23 goals in 39 games for Liverpool during the calendar year of 2008, in addition to scoring the only goal of the game to end at the European Championships in the final against Germany. Torres would probably be a worthy alternative winner for 2008, despite the fact all his best form came in the second half of the 2007-08 season, and he only actually scored 5 goals in 16 games for Liverpool in the first half of the 2008-09 season. Iker Casillas and Xavi would have completed the podium were it not for Messi and Ronaldo in 2008. Meanwhile, somewhat incredibly, Andrei Arshavin came 6th, off the back of an impressive Euros with Russia. 2009 Xavi Messi leapfrogged Ronaldo into top spot in 2009, a year in which Barcelona won every trophy on offer under Pep Guardiola. That meant 5 of the top 7 in terms of Ballon d'Or voting with Barcelona players at the 2009 Ballon d'Or, with the two exceptions being Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaká. 3rd place Xavi would have been the winner without those two maestros, and a worthy winner too. Xavi was phenomenal in 2009, as he was throughout Guardiola's reign at the Camp Nou, and he topped the La Liga assist charts in both the 2008-09 and 2009-10 campaigns. Xavi also topped the Champions League assist charts in the 2008-09 season, and picked up the Man of the Match award as Barca danced around Manchester United in the tournament's final at Wembley. Iniesta and Samuel Eto'o would complete the podium, but Xavi was the pick of the bunch. 2010 Andres Iniesta Both Spain and Barcelona dominated the late 2000s and early 2010s, so it's no surprise to see Spanish players clearing up in this video. Andres Iniesta actually came 2nd in the 2010 Ballon d'Or voting, as Cristiano Ronaldo dropped to a decade-low 6th place finish, and he wasn't too far off Lionel Messi in top spot. Iniesta was obviously exceptional in 2010, just about at the peak of his powers at the time, but his position in 2nd was thanks in no small part to his scoring the only goal in the 2010 World Cup final. That ensured Spain won their first ever World Cup, and were it not for Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta would have won the Ballon d'Or. A very good case could have been made for Wesley Schneider in 2010, who starred for Inter Milan as they won the Champions League, and for the Netherlands as they reached a World Cup final. In Messi and Ronaldo's absence, it is Iniesta's club and international teammate Xavi, along with Schneider, who would have completed the 2010 podium. 2011 Xavi I shouldn't think there is anyone out there who needs reminding of how brilliant Xavi and Iniesta were, particularly whilst playing under Pep Guardiola, but if there are, then this video serves as that reminder. Messi won the Ballon d'Or by a landslide in 2011, meanwhile Cristiano Ronaldo bounced back into 2nd place. The battle for 3rd, equating to top spot in this video, is won by Xavi for a second time. 2011 and 2012 were Xavi's most prolific years in terms of goal scoring, and he was also named by IFFHS as the world's best playmaker in 2011, a year in which Barcelona won 5 trophies, including both La Liga and the Champions League. His old pal Andres Iniesta trailed him by just a few percent in terms of votes, meanwhile Wayne Rooney would sneak into the podium in 3rd, were it not for Messi and Ronaldo. In truth, Messi and Ronaldo hoovered up so much of the vote in 2011, roughly 70% between them, that the rest of the pack were battling it out over a tiny number of votes, and Wayne Rooney came 5th with just 2.31% of the overall votes cast. 2012 Andres Iniesta For the first 5 years of this video, between 2008 and 2012, the Ballon d'Or would have been won by a Spaniard every year if it were not for Messi and Ronaldo, but in 2012, Pep Guardiola left Barcelona, and their era of dominance along with Spain's on the international stage began to wane. Xavi and Iniesta traded places every year from 2009 to 2012 as the would-be winners, and the former teammates would each have won a couple of Ballon d'Ors without Messi and Ronaldo. In 2012, Spain made it a trio of consecutive major trophies in style at the European Championships, and Iniesta was named as the player of the tournament. Iniesta was at his creative peak in 2012, meanwhile Xavi unsurprisingly finished one place behind him in Ballon d'Or voting, and Colombian centre-forward Radamel Falcao would complete our top 3 off the back of a sensational year with Atletico Madrid. 2013 Franck Ribery Cristiano Ronaldo won his first Ballon d'Or since 2009 and 2013, but it was an incredibly tight call between the top 3. Ronaldo received 27.99% of the votes, Messi received 24.72% of the votes, and Franck Ribery collected 23.36% of the votes. Rarely had anyone driven the duo so close, and Ribery did so off the back of an inspired season at Bayern Munich. A special talent, Ribery would have been a potential Ballon d'Or winner in most eras following a 12-month period like the one he enjoyed in 2013, but it wasn't any ordinary Bayern Munich were the best team in the world in 2013, winning the Bundesliga and the Champions League, and Ribery was their best player. Ribery also had as many big moments as either Messi or Ronaldo in 2013, creating the first and assisting the winner in Bayern's 2-1 Champions League final victory against compatriots Borussia Dortmund, hence why he received such a high percentage of the votes. Ribery would be the rightful winner in 2013 without Messi and Ronaldo, meanwhile Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Neymar would complete the top 3. Manuel Neuer Having left Barcelona in 2012, Pep Guardiola took over at Bayern Munich in 2013, and both the 2013 and 2014 Ballon d'Or bronze medallists played for Bayern Munich. Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or in 2014, but there was little to split Lionel Messi in 2nd and Manuel Neuer in 3rd. The Bayern goalkeeper was at his dominant and confident best in 2014, bringing the role of the sweeper-keeper back into prominence and doing so in style. Neuer won the double with Bayern in 2014, but he also won the World Cup with Germany, picking up the World Cup Golden Glove in the process. He consequently won more than 15% of the vote at the 2004 Ballon d'Or, putting him comfortably 3rd, ahead of Arjen Robben and Thomas Müller in 4th and 5th respectively. 2015 Neymar No one came close to either Messi or Ronaldo in 2015 Ballon d'Or voting, as Messi reclaimed his crown and Ronaldo picked up more than 27% of the votes in 2nd. Neymar made his first appearance in the top 3 in his first full calendar year with Barcelona, and consequently he's the Messi and Ronaldo free inclusion for 2015. The Brazilian magician collected close to 8% of the overall vote during a year in which Barcelona lit up the Champions League with a front 3 of Messi, Neymar and Suarez. Suarez himself came 5th in Ballon d'Or voting in 2015, meanwhile Robert Lewandowski took 4th, so those two would complete the podium in a 2015 World Free of Messi and Ronaldo. 2016 Antoine Griezmann Antoine Griezmann has perhaps somewhat generously twice made the top 3 of Ballon d'Or voting, meanwhile no other out-and-out centre forward has done so during the last decade. That's what happens when the award is so heavily focused around the major competitions such as the Champions League, World Cup and European Championships though, and Griezmann had an excellent Euro 2016. Off the back of his best season with Atletico Madrid, Griezmann won the Golden Boot and was named as the player of the tournament, as France were losing finalists against Portugal on home soil. Luis Suarez took 4th following a ridiculously good season with Barcelona, whilst Neymar dropped down to 5th. As brilliant as Griezmann was in 2016, if we're up to me, my Messi and Ronaldo free choice for 2016 would be Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan menace broke the Messi and Ronaldo dominance over the La Liga Golden Boot in the and bagged a stupendous 59 goals in all competitions. Neymar Without Messi and Ronaldo, there would have been three two-time Ballon d'Or winners since 2008, all of whom played for Barcelona. Joining Xavi and Iniesta in that elite bracket, Neymar actually played for two clubs in 2017, since that was the year in which he became the most expensive footballer of all time in a £198m move to PSG. Neymar made a superb start to life in the French capital, which helped him to win 361 points in Ballon d'Or vetting, but the move hasn't since propelled him ahead of Messi or Ronaldo in the rankings, as he may have hoped. Trailing Neymar were veteran Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric. 2018 Luka Modric The only year since 2008 in which neither Messi or Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or, Luka Modric pulled off the unthinkable in 2018. Having finished in a personal best fifth place in 2017, Modric won the 2018 award, off the back of an awe-inspiring 12 months with both Real Madrid and Croatia. Modric was unmistakably brilliant in 2018, but he wasn't the best footballer in the world. Without Messi or Ronaldo, however, he probably would have been a worthy winner, meanwhile Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah also deserve to be in the conversation. The actual Messi and Ronaldo free podium for 2018 would have put Antoine Griezmann in second and his fellow countrymen and teenager Kylian Mbappe in third. 2019 Virgil van Dijk Messi and Ronaldo once again didn't occupy the top two places in 2019 Ballon d'Or voting, as Lionel Messi returned to the summit, but Cristiano Ronaldo finished third. Sandwiched between the two all-time greats was Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk, who came incredibly close to pipping Lionel Messi to top spot. Van Dijk was an absolute rock in the back for Liverpool throughout 2019, helping them become so dominant in the Premier League, as they narrowly missed out on a league title with a record points tally for the club, in addition to winning the Champions League. More so than just his own talents, van Dijk brings an assurance and awe of confidence to the Liverpool team. The Reds' Champions League win saw them occupy four of the top seven places in 2019, and were it not for Messi and Ronaldo, the 2019 podium would have been Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah in that order. Of all the players in 2019 Ballon d'Or voting, I thought Robert Lewandowski was pretty hard done by to only come eighth, given his outrageous goalscoring record throughout the calendar year. That's it for the alternative 2008-2019 Ballon d'Or winners. In total, Xavi, Iniesta and Neymar all would have won the award twice, meanwhile Fernando Torres, Franck Ribéry, Manuel Neuer, Antoine Griezmann, Luka Modric and Virgil van Dijk would have won it once. Ballon d'Or discussions often tend to bring out the worst in football YouTube, so hopefully that doesn't happen in the comments here. Ultimately, the Ballon d'Or has shown itself to be a bit of a daft popularity contest, particularly in recent years. Ronaldo coming sixth in 2010 and particularly Messi coming fifth in 2018, just because people were getting a bit bored of the same old winners, when he was the best player in the world that year, shows that to be the case. Nevertheless, lots of people requested this video, so I hope you all enjoyed it. Smash the like button if so, let us know your thoughts and any potential video ideas in the comments and do of course make sure you are subscribed to HITC Sevens, which is the Ballon d'Or winner of football YouTube channels.