Sir Alex Ferguson knows a thing or two about spotting talent. After all, a huge amount of his success at Manchester United came from identifying the best prospects in the club academy and turning them into first team stars.
The fabled Class of 92', featuring future icons David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville, Phil Neville and Paul Scholes, helped delivered a period of vast success at Old Trafford, in which Ferguson won 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies.
Perhaps his biggest success story of spotting potential in a young player and developing them into a world-beater was Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese star was plucked from Sporting Lisbon in 2003 – after Man United's failed move for Ronaldinho – and left in 2009 as perhaps the best player on the planet, having won the 2008 Ballon d'Or.
In total, Ronaldo has won the Ballon d'Or five times in his career, but Ferguson believes he deserves at least one more to his tally.
Ferguson Felt Cristiano Ronaldo Deserved a 6th Ballon d'Or
"He's broken record after record"
Speaking in 2021, Sir Alex insisted that Ronaldo 'deserved' to win the Ballon d'Or that year, as he'd broken so many records over the course of the season. The Man United legend explained to Marca:
"Cristiano deserves it. This year he's broken record after record."
Ferguson wasn't wrong on that front. That was the season Ronaldo became the highest scorer ever in the Champions League (a record which still holds, with his final goal tally in the competition sitting at 141). He also became the
top goalscorer in the history of football (another record he still holds, having now surpassed the 900-goal mark).
On top of that, he became the highest scorer at the European Championships (14), and broke the record for highest number of international appearances (currently 221).
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Lionel Messi Won the 2021 Prize Instead
Robert Lewandowski came second
Inter Miami's Lionel Messi with the men's Ballon d'Or
At that stage, Ronaldo had five Ballon d'Or wins, while long-term adversary Lionel Messi had one more. However, the Argentine would end up scooping the award that year, and has since gone on to seal a record eighth.
In 2021, Ronaldo scored 43 goals and picked up six assists. He also won the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana with Juventus. Even so, the current Al-Nassr star didn't even get a place on the Ballon d'Or podium, as he ended up ranking way down in sixth position.
Messi finished the campaign with 41 goals and 17 assists. On top of that, he was named Player of the Tournament and picked up the Golden Boot as Argentina lifted Copa America (which was his first major international trophy). He also lifted the Copa del Rey during his final campaign with Barcelona.
Of the lot, Robert Lewandowski might feel the most hard done by. The then-Bayern Munich star finished the campaign with 64 goals and 10 assists. Won the Bundesliga, the Club World Cup and the DFL-Supercup, but this still wasn't enough.
Messi even mentioned Lewandowski in his victory speech, claiming the Poland international should have won it the year prior when it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the despondent striker called them 'empty words'.
As for Ronaldo, he finished 20th the following year and has not been considered a realistic contender for the Ballon d'Or since. Although former Real Madrid teammate Marcelo has tipped him as a shock winner in 2025.
Stats via Goal