Cristiano Ronaldo Continues Ballon d’Or Curse, As Portugal Exits 2014 World Cup
If Cristiano Ronaldo had any hopes of avoiding the Ballon d’Or curse at the 2014 World Cup, then he has to be sorely disappointed. The Portuguese mega star failed to get out of the groups stage and now has to watch the rest of the tournament in the comfort of his own home.
The FIFA Ballon d’Or, or Golden Ball, is awarded to the best player in the world each year. In 2014 Cristiano Ronaldo finally shook off his rival, Lionel Messi, to take the honor. However, with that came the belief that when a player wins the coveted prize, he is unable to win the World Cup title.
Unfortunately for Ronaldo, the curse proved to be very much alive in 2014. Despite a stellar season with Real Madrid, the 29-year-old failed to advance to the round of 16. The Portuguese captain was hoping to be the one to break what some call a curse in Brazil, but that was not the case.
Messi won what was then the FIFA World Player of the Year, and in the 2010 World Cup Argentina failed to move on to the semifinals, ending up in fifth place. The same happened to Brazilian star Ronaldinho, who won the award in 2005, but reached the sixth place in the 2006 World Cup. The same happened to Michael Owen, Brazilian Ronaldo, Roberto Baggio, and others.
Cristiano Ronaldo adds his name to the Ballon d’Or curse in 2014. Not only did he fail to advance, Ronaldo only scored one goal in the entire tournament. A clearly unhappy Ronaldo put on a brave face and said that Portugal played a “good game” against Ghana, on Thursday — his last World Cup match, possibly the last ever.
Cristiano Ronaldo cumplió con la "maldición del Balón de Oro" en el Mundial http://t.co/E4tl2at7Ga pic.twitter.com/CBXwQZIQhF
— futbolizados (@futbolizados) June 27, 2014
In Ronaldo’s defense, he was not at 100 percent due to injury and it was apparent that he was holding back on the field. There were rumors that his physician had strongly suggested he sit out the rest of the World Cup or risk a career ending injury. However, the 29-year-old chose to play for his country, but was not much of a factor at the 2014 World Cup.
But it was not all bad. Even if Cristiano Ronaldo was under the Ballon d’Or curse, he managed to break some records and became the only player to have scored at Euro 2004, World Cup 2006, Euro 2008, World Cup 2010, Euro 2012, and World Cup 2014. With his goal against Ghana, Ronaldo is the first Portuguese football player to score in three World Cups.
[Image via Twitter]
