Cristiano Ronaldo A ‘Certainty’ For Ballon D’Or, Striker In A ‘League Of His Own’

Cristiano Ronaldo continues to draw plaudits thanks to his superlative performances, and his Real Madrid coach now believes that it’s a formality that he’ll win the Ballon d’or for a second year in a row.

Ronaldo scored a last minute header for Portugal to guide them to victory over Denmark during their Euro 2016 qualifier this week, but Carlo Ancelotti actually made his remarks before the international break.

The Italian manager declared that Ronaldo is a shoo-in for the coveted award after he watched him score his third hat-trick in just four La Liga games. Ronaldo has already scored 15 goals this season, and he has now found the back of the net in seven consecutive matches while playing for Madrid.

Ancelotti, who was under pressure thanks to Madrid’s stuttering form at the start of the season, has now told Real Madrid’s official website [via Sky Sports] that he believes Ronaldo is set to add to his Ballon d’or collection.

“There’s little doubt this year, I think (regarding the Ballon d’or). I don’t think there are any bets because I don’t think there’s any doubt this year.”

Last season, Ronaldo finally landed the award, which is given to the athlete that FIFA believes has been the outstanding player over the last 12 months. This brought an end to Lionel Messi’s monopoly of the trophy, as he had previously picked up the Ballon d’or for the past four seasons in a row.

Ronaldo was actually the player who last landed the accolade before Messi’s impressive run began. In 2009, he was voted the winner after his fantastic form while playing for Manchester United.

Ancelotti was joined in his praise of Ronaldo by the man he replaced as Real Madrid manager. Jose Mourinho believes that the Portuguese forward is now head and shoulders above his peers, and he even called Ronaldo a “goals machine.”

“Cristiano is a goals machine. He is an incredible player. He is like (Zinedine) Zidane, there will never be another Ronaldo.”

Meanwhile, Ronaldo has also admitted that he would love to win a third Ballon d’Or, but that he doesn’t want to concentrate on that accolade right now as the final decision won’t be made until January.

“I am not going to pretend otherwise I would love to win my third Golden Ball. It doesn’t depend on me so I am just going to keep doing the best I can and let’s see what happens in January. I have had a great start to the season and my scoring record is better than ever. I hope it’s going to be a year of great success on a team and individual level.”

[Image via Meristation]