5 Greatest Players Who Never Won The Ballon D'or

Ballon D’or - a noble title that any active football player dreams of touching once. We have seen many players who have reached the highest glory through the continuous ownership of this prestigious title. There are a few names like Johan Cruyff, Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. However, not every excellent player has the opportunity to become the owner of that prestigious golden ball. We also witness many cases, no matter how talented they are, in their glorious career, they have never reached the golden ball. Who are they? Let's find out with ANZFootball -  live football on tv!

Thierry Henry

Former Arsenal player Theo Walcott once commented on Thierry that: At a distance of 40m, Thierry Henry can run faster than a leopard. Or Zidane - his compatriot who fought in the French shirt said: Ronaldinho is a special player in the world, but Thierry Henry only possesses the technique that God has given him to play beautiful matches. He, along with Ronaldo and Messi, are the 3 players who have received two consecutive Golden Shoe titles in history. Born and raised in France, but Henry has adventured to fight for many top clubs in the world such as Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal or Barcelona.

In particular, the peak of his career in shorts was definitely the time he wore the colors of Arsenal and Barcelona. At the Emirates Stadium team, Henry has always shown himself to be a top scorer when he continuously scored over 30 goals per season at his peak. Possessing personal technique, diverse finishing ability and especially extremely fast speed, Henry is nicknamed by fans as the son of the wind god. He was also one of the key factors in Arsenal's unbeaten streak in the 2003/04 season when playing extremely well with Dennis Bergkamp in attack, thereby becoming the player to score the most goals for the club with 228 goals. 

His importance was evident when he left Arsenal to join Barcelona. For the next several years, Arsenal could not find a worthy replacement. At Barca, Henry and the Catalan giants made a miracle season with a great 6 before he moved to the US to play and retired in 2014. At the national team level, Henry won the World Cup in 1998 with the French team, but his contributions at that time were not much. However, he shined brightly when he won the Euro Cup in 2000 with the French team and finished second in the two FIFA Best Player of the Year polls. During his career, Henry clearly did not lack any trophy. However, the Golden Ball award never came to him. The French player finished second in the poll in 2003 and third in 2006. 

Xavi

If it comes to an excellent midfielder of the world football village, Xavi is clearly an indispensable name in this list. During the five peak years from 2008 to 2012, Xavi was the conductor, the soul of Barca and the Spanish team. With him in the squad, these teams have reaped many noble titles of world football such as Champions League, Euro, World Cup.

However, the voters did not seem to pay too much attention to his quiet role. Despite his excellent performance, he was only able to finish third for 3 consecutive years from 2009 to 2011. The main role of Xavi at Barcelona is Messi's support and this is the reason why he can't win the Ballon d'Or.

At Barca and Spain, Xavi is a central midfielder who plays an important role in coach Pep Guardiola's squad. He commanded everything from midfield with incredible passes. The former Spain player is a symbol of Barcelona and played at the Camp Nou team until 2015. Besides, he is also an important nucleus in the Spain team, helping the team win three consecutive tournaments including Euro. 2008 World Cup 2010 and Euro 2012. 

Andres Iniesta 

Iniesta suffered the same fate as Xavi. In the golden era, Iniesta was not appreciated for his role when the Ballon D’or award was only given to strikers like Messi or Christiano Ronaldo. Most regrettably in 2012, Iniesta played extremely well for Spain and helped La Roja win the Euro. But he also only finished second to Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Iniesta has all the similarities with Xavi. Both played for Barca, supported Messi and together won all the glory with Barca and Spain. Like Xavi, he had to live in Messi's shadow and was one of the best players who could never win the Ballon d'Or.

In the era of Ronaldo and Messi, Iniesta is arguably the best star. He won La Liga with Barca and was the only scorer in World Cup extra time, helping Spain beat the Netherlands 1-0 to lift the Golden Cup. That same year, the former Spain midfielder was named the best player in the World Cup.

However, he did not receive the 2010 Golden Ball title that he deserved. Instead, the title was given to Lionel Messi, despite Argentina being eliminated from the quarterfinals at the World Cup that season, and the former Barca star only finished second. In 2018, Iniesta left Barca when he was on the other side of the slope of his career without ever winning the Ballon d'Or.

On the day Iniesta left Barca, France Football magazine apologized to him for not giving him the opportunity to become the best player in the world. And the fact that Spain could not win the best ranking in the 2018 World Cup made Iniesta's farewell sadder. In the same year, he was not on the list of nominees. 

David Beckham 

In the early years of the 21st century, especially the period from 2000 to 2004, the name David Beckham was probably one of the most famous names in the world. His popularity is comparable to that of any entertainment star or cult politician. However, despite being the most influential football player in the era of Zidane, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Luis Figo, David Beckham has never been recognized as the best player in the world.

Referring to Beckham, people will immediately think of crosses, direct free kicks or brand- name openings. The world has seen many players called little Zidane, little Maradona, little Pele, but never seen little Beckham. The heirs of Ronaldo's spins, Maradona's solos or Ronaldinho's technical prowess can all be found in the world, but the English midfielder's style of play is completely unique. From the free kick momentum to the spin of the ball is very special, no one has been able to reproduce it throughout the history of football. It can be said that David Beckham is the best English winger of all time and an example for all players to play football in this style.

Beckham's career at club level has experienced many memorable periods, but the most memorable is the time when he and the Red Devils won the historic treble in the 1998/99 season. At that time, he scored nine goals and had 18 assists, thereby becoming a leading candidate for the Golden Ball title. Ironically, on the day of the award, it was Brazilian superstar Rimando that was the name to be mentioned, not the English midfielder. Since then, the golden ball has always been a title that Beckham always feels pain when thinking about. After that period, Beckham, despite having an outstanding playing time at Real Madrid, still did not once get this noble title. 

Raul Gonzalez 

Debuting in 1994 and scoring his first goal in the match de Madrid, “Lord of the Rings” did not stop doing this work for the next 21 years. Scoring with him is responsibility and love. Raul continuously creates memorable milestones in his career at Real when owning 16 different big and small trophies. The only trophy he lacks in the collection is the King's Cup. Instead, the German Cup with Schalke in the 2010/11 season is also considered as a necessary addition.

However, perhaps because of the silent pursuit of success, Raul Gonzalez did not receive enough honor on a personal level. During 21 years of playing at the top, Lord of the Rings was never the focus of the media. Because of his lack of self-branding, the FIFA Ballon d'Or has never belonged to Raul, even when the title was so close in 2001. That season, he scored 32 goals - the most ever career and won La Liga with Real Madrid. But strangely enough, the victory was called by Michael Owen - who scored only 24 goals in all competitions and won 2nd Division Cups with Liverpool.

Missing that opportunity, Raul also never had the opportunity to reach this noble Golden Ball title again.

Above is a list of the 5 best players in the world who have never won the Ballon d'Or. Are there any other outstanding names that have been forgotten by this prestigious award? Leave a comment below to let ANZFootball know!