RUPIND3R
heaven's got a hitman
- Player of the year:
Lionel MESSI (ARG) - Player of the year:
MARTA (BRA)
Sporting a disbelieving look but smiling all the same, Lionel Messi joked at how heavy the newly presented FIFA Ballon d’Or felt. After his Barcelona coach Josep Guardiola offered to take it home for him, the Argentinian magician stepped down from the stage and spoke about his triumph .
Lionel, how are you feeling?
Lionel Messi: I’m happy, but I didn’t expect it because everyone had been talking so much about Xavi and Andres [Iniesta]. They also deserved it for the wonderful year they had. They won the World Cup, which usually goes a long way to deciding who wins this award, and they both had big parts to play in that. That’s why I thought one of them would be going up to collect the trophy. It was a wonderful surprise.
How do you think they are feeling?
I don’t think they’re sad about it. It was a great thing for the three of us and the club to have got this far. I think we all enjoyed the gala.
You obviously feel they deserved to win it, but what do you think tipped it in your favour?
Well, the people who voted decided to choose me and I’m very grateful for that. This is my second world player of the year award and I feel just as happy as I did the first time, if not more so. We’re going to enjoy it.