Lewandowski dubs Messi Ballon d’Or tribute ’Empty Words’
Robert Lewandowski was unconvinced by Lionel Messi’s tribute to him at last week’s Ballon d’Or ceremony, when the Bayern Munich star called his rival’s comments ’empty words’.
Messi, 34, controversially teased Lewandowski, 33, about the 2021 award, with many fans and pundits arguing that the Polish marksman deserved the award more.
The Bayern Munich striker was the standout performer of 2020 and was cruelly denied the Ballon d’Or that year as it was canceled due to Covid.
In his acceptance speech, Messi acknowledged that Lewandowski deserved the 2020 award and called on event organizers France Football to hand the Pole his gong afterwards.
“Robert, you deserve your Ballon d’Or. Last year everyone agreed that you were the big winner of this award,” he said.
However, the 33-year-old was unimpressed by Messi’s comments, calling them “empty words” before insisting he doesn’t care about a token reward.
“I’m not that excited about getting the 2020 award,” Lewandowski told Kanale Sportowym via marca.
‘I would love it’ [Messi’s 2020 Ballon d’Or statement] to be a sincere and courteous statement from a great player and not just empty words.”
Reflecting on last week’s near miss, Lewandowski said: “I felt sad. I can’t deny it.
‘I can’t say I was happy, on the contrary. I have a feeling of sadness. Of course, to be so close, to compete with Messi, I respect how he plays and what he has achieved. Just the fact that I could compete with him shows me the level I could reach.’
Lewandowski has scored 130 goals in 108 games since the start of the 2019-20 season, and his missing top prize will serve as motivation for his Bayern Munich team-mates, Thomas Muller revealed.
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Looking back at the awards ceremony, Lewandowski admitted he felt ‘sadness’ about missing out on
“From a Bavarian, Polish and also German point of view, the Ballon d’Or presentation was certainly a disappointment, for some even a bit more,” said Muller after the result.