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Barcelona forward Lionel Messi won a second Best International
Athlete ESPY award on Wednesday night, finishing ahead of Real Madrid rival
Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Argentinian superstar also beat world No. 1 tennis
star Novak Djokovic, Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton and golf sensation Lydia
Ko in a category that was packed with quality, reported by ESPN FC.
While Ronaldo won the award last year, he was unable to
follow up January's Ballon d'Or with a second triumph at the Los Angeles-based
ceremony.
Messi was also nominated for Best Play for his
sensational opener in Barca's 3-1 Copa del Rey final victory over Athletic
Bilbao at the end of May. He didn't emerge victorious over New York Giants wide
receiver Odell Beckham Jr., however, as highlighted by the official ESPY feed:
Former Barca defender Miguel Angel Nadal doesn't believe
Messi and Ronaldo are in the same league. "Cristiano Ronaldo has been
putting in spectacular performances, but there really is no comparison with
Messi," he said, relayed by Adrian Boullosa of
Goal. "He is on another level than all the other players. He is the
undisputed best. No player has the ability to do what he does."
Messi scored 58 goals during the Blaugrana's league, Copa
del Rey and Champions League treble last season.
He also became the all-time top scorer in the domestic
division and European club tournament, per ESPN FC, breaking records during a
campaign in which he enjoyed a stunning relationship with forward partners
Neymar and Luis Suarez.
Ronaldo finished as top scorer in La Liga with 48 goals,
retaining the European Golden Shoe in the process.
However, besides the UEFA Super Cup and the Club World
Cup, Carlo Ancelotti's unbalanced Madrid side failed to win any silverware in a
frustrating season, which ended with his sacking and the installation of Rafa
Benitez, who didn't manage to guide Napoli to the 2015-16 Champions League.
Despite his club success, Messi continues to fall
slightly short on the international stage, having led Argentina to the World
Cup and Copa America finals in the last year.
Respective defeats to Germany and Chile—in matches the
Albiceleste had plenty of chances to win—stopped Messi from quieting the
detractors who believe he cannot be considered a great until he
pushes his country to trophies.
Messi's brilliance is amplified by his ability to both
bring team-mates into matches and flaunt individual skill. He is an unselfish
player who will just as readily assist a goal as beat multiple defenders before
rounding off moves himself.
Few come close to replicating his poise and balance on
the ball, while he is also deceptively quick and strong for someone who is
roughly 5'6" tall.
Ronaldo is often seen as more of an individual and
someone who places his success before his team's. This is an unfair
assessment—only Messi outranked the Portuguese's 16 assists in La Liga last
season, per WhoScored.com—but it's Ronaldo's emotional state on the
pitch which makes him an easy target.
This was highlighted when Gareth Bale sneaked in
to score ahead of Ronaldo during last season's home match with Levante:
Messi is currently as low as 1-10 to win next year's
Ballon d'Or, perOddschecker. Ronaldo is second favourite at 15-2, but it
seems Leo has already achieved enough to once again be named the best
footballer on the planet.
The Argentinian will likely make it two ESPY award wins
in a row if he starts the upcoming campaign how he finished the last, an
achievement that will no doubt usher in further Barcelona success.
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