While Messi and Virgil were part of the ceremony in Paris, both Ronaldo and Mane remained absent.
Liverpool's Senegalese striker Sadio Mane controls the ball during the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Newcastle at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England on September 14, 2019. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP)
The much-awaited Ballon d’Or 2019 was awarded to the Argentine legend Lionel Messi in France on Monday. Many football stars around the world were part of the ceremony. Among people who were expected to give stiff competition to Mess were stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Virgil van Dijk, and Sadio Mane.
However, while Messi and Virgil were part of the ceremony in Paris, both Ronaldo and Mane were not part of the event. Later, Liverpool striker Mane himself revealed why he did not attend the 2019 Ballon d’Or ceremony in a short video message.
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What the video right here:
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🇸🇳 Sadio Mané, 4e du #ballondor 2019, a un petit message pour vous ! pic.twitter.com/lUWyzZvFhW
— #BallondOr (@francefootball) December 2, 2019
“Hello everyone, it’s Sadio Mane – I would have loved to be here with you, but sadly my schedule didn’t allow me, because I have a game this Wednesday,” the 27-year-old said.
“I congratulate the winner and give him a proper challenge next year. I’ll try to be there and maybe lift the Ballon d’Or. Inshallah. See you soon, bye,” he added.
Notably, Mane had scored 22 goals in the Premier League last season and ended the 2018-19 season as the top scorer of the league.
The top 10 Ballon d’Or Rankings are as follows:
1. Lionel Messi
2. Virgil van Dijk
3. Cristiano Ronaldo
4. Sadio Mane
5. Mohamed Salah
6. Kylian Mbappe
7. Alisson Becker
8. Robert Lewandowski
9. Bernardo Silva
10. Kevin de Bruyne
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