{"id":292595,"date":"2023-10-31T11:24:16","date_gmt":"2023-10-31T11:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportsloveme.com\/?p=292595"},"modified":"2023-10-31T11:24:16","modified_gmt":"2023-10-31T11:24:16","slug":"lionel-messi-plays-down-goat-label-after-winning-eighth-ballon-dor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportsloveme.com\/soccer\/lionel-messi-plays-down-goat-label-after-winning-eighth-ballon-dor\/","title":{"rendered":"Lionel Messi plays down GOAT label after winning eighth Ballon d&apos;or"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Lionel Messi posts for the first time since Ballon d&#8217;Or success to dedicate his eighth title to Argentina staff and players, insisting he would not have won it without World Cup success&#8230; as humble superstar plays down being labelled the GOAT<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li>The 36-year-old won the Ballon d&#8217;Or on his idol Diego Maradona&#8217;s 63rd birthday<\/li>\n<li><strong>Erling Haaland and IShowSpeed cross paths at the Ballon d&#8217;Or ceremony in Paris\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport&#8217;s podcast &#8216;It&#8217;s All Kicking Off!&#8217;\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Lionel Messi has posted on social media for the first time since his Ballon d&#8217;Or success as he humbly played down being labelled the greatest of all time.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The Argentinian legend won his record-breaking eighth Ballon d&#8217;Or last night after a glittering season.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The superstar led his country to World Cup glory for the first time in his career as well as winning the Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>He fended off Manchester City striker Erling Haaland and former PSG team-mate Kylian Mbappe who finished second and third respectively.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Asked whether he was the best football player in history at the ceremony, the 36-year-old replied: &#8216;As I always said, I do not know if I am the best player in history or not.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/31\/09\/77211969-0-image-a-1_1698746249592.jpg\" height=\"436\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Inter Miami&#8217;s Lionel Messi won his record-breaking eighth Ballon d&#8217;Or yesterday evening<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/31\/09\/77211975-0-image-a-3_1698746251960.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Man City&#8217;s Erling Haaland scored 52 goals last season but still missed out on the top ranking<\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;If I am one of the best, then this is a wonderful thing.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Messi also wrote on his Instagram: &#8216;I only have words of gratitude for all the people around the world who supported me so much during my career and to whom I want to specially dedicate this award, along with my family who was always by my side.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;This is a Ballon d&#8217;Or that I also want to share with my fellow, technical body, the employees&#8230; Because without the World Cup we achieved together it would have been impossible to win it. Congratulations to all the winners and many thanks!&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Now at MLS side Inter Miami, the club&#8217;s co-owner David Beckham presented Messi with his Ballon d&#8217;Or award.<\/p>\n<p>Upon accepting it he wished the late Argentine legend Diego Maradona, who died in 2020 following a fatal heart attack, a happy birthday during his acceptance speech.<\/p>\n<p>Being as Maradona was perhaps the most iconic soccer player born in Argentina besides Messi, it did not escape the 36-yeard-old&#8217;s attention that he won the award on his idol&#8217;s 63rd birthday.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;Wherever you are, this is also for you. Happy birthday, Diego,&#8217; said Messi before he received a heartwarming applause from the crowd.<\/p>\n<p>Messi was joined on the stage by his wife Antonela and their three sons Thiago, Mateo, and Ciro as he accepted the award.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/31\/09\/77211979-0-image-a-2_1698746249619.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Paris Saint-Germain&#8217;s Kylian Mbappe finished in third place in the Ballon d&#8217;Or rankings<\/p>\n<h3>IT&#8217;S ALL KICKING OFF!\u00a0<\/h3>\n<p><span><span>It&#8217;s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><span>It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/football\/article-12692615\/Lionel-Messi-dedicates-eighth-Ballon-dOr-Argentina-staff-players-humble-superstar-plays-labelled-GOAT.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lionel Messi posts for the first time since Ballon d&#8217;Or success to dedicate his eighth title to Argentina staff and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":292594,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.8 - 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