Chapter 668: Chapter 667: The Only Time in FIFA History They Backed Down
The ninth place in the World Footballer of the Year goes to Shevchenko’s teammate, the soul of AC Milan, and the cornerstone of Italy’s defense, Maldini!
In eighth place is the former Golden Ball winner, the leader of Real Madrid’s homegrown faction, The Lord of the Rings—Raul!
With Ronaldo’s transfer, Raul saw a significant decline in his rankings across various leaderboards.
It was inevitable.
Zidane did not become a victim of Ronaldo’s arrival because Raul made huge sacrifices.
Some say Raul was taken to heights by Real Madrid that he should not have reached.
But, likewise, others believe that Real Madrid’s strategy of signing superstars affected Raul’s historical status.
Both points of view hold some merit.
The seventh place goes to England’s top star, Beckham, who joined Real Madrid this summer.
In fact, Beckham’s current performance at Real Madrid isn’t considered good, but his ranking remains so high, which is inseparable from his transfer in the summer.
This further demonstrates Real Madrid’s significant advantage in award voting.
Bear in mind, this is still without them having won the UEFA Champions League.
In sixth place is another Real Madrid superstar, the world’s number one left-back from Brazil, Roberto Carlos!
Half of the top ten players for the World Footballer of the Year are from Real Madrid.
No matter their competitive results, from a club’s perspective, Real Madrid has won big.
Florentino, in operations, is truly the G.O.A.T.
In fifth place is Juventus’s new Zidane, the iron man Nedved!
If Juventus had won the Champions League, he might have entered the top three.
But Kaka targeted Nedved.
Still, a fifth place in the World Footballer rankings is a very excellent achievement.
Even those in tenth place are people standing at the pinnacle of their field.
Cristiano Ronaldo: ???
Cristiano Ronaldo: What do you mean "even"? Is the tenth place bad?
Cristiano Ronaldo: When Deng Kai got tenth place, you called tenth place ’sweetheart’, but when it’s my turn, you call it ’the cattle lady’?
The fourth place of the World Footballer of the Year goes to the Gunner King, Henry, who got a massive 24+25 double-double last season!
The only thing he’s missing is Champions League success.
If Arsenal had won the Champions League, Henry would surely have swept all the awards for number one, becoming the new World’s Best Player.
Currently, Henry has a good chance, since Arsenal is in excellent form.
Ronaldo, Deng Kai, Zidane!
Three top stars contended for the World Footballer of the Year in the final showdown.
In the end, Ronaldo fell first, becoming this year’s third in the world and lifting the bronze trophy.
A pity, in the final contest.
Deng Kai came in second.
Zidane became this year’s World Footballer of the Year.
Many fans online felt injustice for Deng Kai.
They believed that the World Footballer of the Year should be Deng Kai.
Last year’s Golden Ball Award, Deng Kai came in second.
This year’s World Footballer of the Year, again second.
What’s all this about?
So neither my Kai’s Champions League treble nor the double champions plus a single-season individual data explosion can get the first place, right?
Must need a World Cup champion, right?
Zidane also didn’t win the World Cup this year!
However, after the rankings were fully announced, the stars present began to congratulate Deng Kai one after another.
Even Zidane, who won the award, said in his acceptance speech, "I am surprised to receive this award; to be honest, I think there were players who performed better than me in the football world over the past year."
"This might be the only trophy in my career that I feel I don’t fully deserve."
"But I can’t say it’s unfair. It might be football making up for what I missed out on when I was younger."
"Thank you to the fans, the judges, and also to up-and-comers like Deng Kai, Henry, and Cristiano Ronaldo, for allowing us old-timers of football to turn over with dignity."
"Thank you to everyone who has always supported me."
"I hope that in the future, I can stand on this stage once again by virtue of my strength."
After Zidane finished speaking, he hugged Deng Kai once more.
His intention was clear.
This trophy belonged to Deng Kai.
The host, moved by the passing of the torch before his eyes, asked Deng Kai to say a few words.
Deng Kai didn’t refuse: "I must counter Zidane on one point, this trophy is rightfully his."
"I know many people think I also deserve to lift this trophy, but not being the only choice reflects that I am not yet strong enough."
"I never blame others!"
"I’m not afraid of controversy or discussion; it’s all motivation for me to become better."
"Zidane deserves it. Just like Ronaldo did last year, he deserved it."
"With so many unsung heroes in world football, why should I always be the lucky one? I don’t want to convey such a wrong notion."
"Being first is not everything. Every person who is devoted to the sport of football, whether they are present here or not, all the excellent players, they all deserve awards in my heart!"
Applause!
With Deng Kai’s valuable remarks, the award ceremony came to a perfect end.
In fact, this result didn’t surprise those in the know.
The FIFA Player of the Year was held early this year, why do you think that is?
The only explanation is that the organizers knew their decision would be hugely controversial, so they had no choice but to hold it early.
Otherwise, after the Golden Ball, which places more emphasis on players’ performance, they would have been lashed by fans.
It’s less about FIFA changing the date, and more about FIFA being scared, they backed down!
This is even rarer than winning FIFA Player of the Year!
So... from the moment FIFA announced the early organization, for many, the results of this year’s FIFA Player of the Year and the Golden Ball winner were already set in stone.
The FIFA Player of the Year was inevitably not Deng Kai.
But the Golden Ball winner... must be Deng Kai!
And it’s not a scandal that the FIFA Player of the Year went to someone else; as Deng Kai gets older and no longer has the ability to be the world’s best, he will still, thanks to the FIFA evaluation system, be competitive for awards for an extra two years.
This is the current situation for both Zidane and Ronaldo.
...
"Zidane wins FIFA Player of the Year again! Deng Kai and Ronaldo ranked second and third!"
"Out with the old, in with the new! Cristiano Ronaldo enters the top ten of FIFA Player of the Year, Figo not on the list!"
"Huge controversy! Over fifty-two percent of fans believe Deng Kai should be FIFA Player of the Year!"
"Zidane admits his performance over the past year was not as good as Deng Kai, winning the award due to fame!"
"Deng Kai acknowledges Zidane’s win, positive speech shows his breadth of mind and courage!"
"Confidence can’t be faked! Deng Kai’s attitude towards the award convinces people he can always create new glories!"
"Digging deeper! FIFA Player of the Year held early due to divergence with Golden Ball over major awards! And the Golden Ball clearly matches people’s expectations more closely!"
"History made! Deng Kai is the first player in world football who made FIFA avoid direct confrontation and adjust the award ceremony timing!"
