Football
Sam Marsden, Barcelona correspondent 5y

Jordi Alba: Lionel Messi snubbed for Ballon d'Or due to 'campaigns in Madrid'

BARCELONA, Spain -- Jordi Alba branded the Ballon d'Or a "lie" and claimed that a Madrid media campaign is the reason Lionel Messi did not win the coveted individual prize this year.

Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric won the Ballon d'Or earlier this week, with Barcelona forward Messi, a five-time winner of the award, finishing fifth in the voting.

Messi, who also finished behind Cristiano Ronaldo, Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappe, responded with a stunning individual performance against Espanyol in the Catalan derby on Saturday.

The Argentine scored two brilliant free kicks as Barca won 4-0 to move three points clear at the top of La Liga, providing the backdrop for Alba's rant about the legitimacy of the Ballon d'Or.

"The Ballon d'Or is a lie," Alba told reporters. "Leo's unique, he's the best ever. He's been the best by some difference for 12, 14 years.

"There are campaigns for other players, who are very good and deserve [recognition]. But in the end, it's a prize for the best, not for [team] trophies.

"They've not been fair with Messi. I think he finished fifth? There are campaigns in Madrid. If Cristiano had been at Madrid, maybe the press and the fans would have wanted him to win it, but he's gone and in exchange it's Modric.

"Modric is a great player and he had a great season. He's one of the best in the world, but the No. 1 is Messi. I don't even look at it anymore, not at the Team of the Season or the Ballon d'Or. Honestly, it's [getting] worse all the time."

Messi also set up Ousmane Dembele for Barca's second goal -- Luis Suarez was also on target -- but he insisted that his performance was not a reaction to being left off the Ballon d'Or podium for the first time since 2006.

"No it wasn't because of that," he told Movistar. "We all went out really fired up from the off. We know what it means to come to this ground and to play against this team -- not just because it's a derby, but because of the great season they're having, beyond their recent results.

"They have a great coach and that's why we went out so up for it. We deserve a lot of credit for ensuring Espanyol weren't the Espanyol they've been this season. We were superior in all senses."

Barca coach Ernesto Valverde, like Alba, is also struggling to understand how Messi missed out on the Ballon d'Or.

"We're infinitely fortunate to be able to have him and enjoy him," Valverde said in his postgame news conference. "We're witnessing an unrepeatable era with him. It's remarkable that he wasn't among the nominees for the Ballon d'Or."

Messi has now scored 19 free kicks in the last four years -- which is more than any team's total in Europe's top five leagues -- after netting two against Espanyol in Cornella-El Prat to take his goal tally for the season to 17.

Asked how to defend against Messi's set plays, Espanyol coach Rubi suggested some more innovative way of thinking may be needed.

"You try little things, moving a little bit, jumping," he said. "But with someone like him, there's not much more you can do. Maybe don't use a wall or come up with something new... I don't know."

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