Cristiano Ronaldo crowns himself 'best player in history' after fifth Ballon d'Or
The 32-year-old picked up the award in a glitzy Eiffel Tower ceremony on Thursday
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Cristiano Ronaldo has crowned himself “the best player in history” after receiving his record-equalling fifth Ballon d’Dor on Thursday night in Paris.
The Real Madrid forward, now 32 years old, picked up the award at a glitzy ceremony underneath the Eiffel Tower to match Lionel Messi’s haul, with the Argentine finishing second to his rival in this year’s vote.
Ronaldo’s efforts in the Champions League earned him the award, as he scored 19 goals in 13 games in the competition across the entirety of 2017.
The Ballon d’Or has now been dominated by the two superstars with one of the pair winning the award in each of the last 10 years, prompting the Portuguese to label himself the most “complete player” in the world.
“I don’t see anyone better than me,” Ronaldo told France Football. “No player does things that I cannot do myself, but I see things others can’t do.
“There’s no more complete player than me. I’m the best player in history — in the good and the bad moments.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments