Cristiano Ronaldo, Bundesliga Star Beat Lionel Messi In Ballon d'Or 2020 Power Rankings

Cristiano Ronaldo and Bundesliga star Robert Lewandowski topped Lionel Messi in 2020 Ballon d’Or weekly rankings.

In the past 12 years, Messi and Ronaldo have taken turns in copping the Ballon d’Or award, and only Croatia’s Luka Modric managed to intervene in 2018. Last year, the Argentine claimed his sixth, leaving Ronaldo, who has won the accolade five times, behind. However, according to the latest rankings, “CR7” now has a greater chance of winning the Ballon d’Or once again.

Every week, Goal reveals their Ballon d'Or 2020 Power Rankings, in which they rank the top 20 players who are most likely to win the most prestigious individual award in the sport. And while Messi and Ronaldo are already obvious candidates, it was Bundesliga star Lewandowski who climbed to the no. 1 spot this week.

Below are Goal’s top five candidates to win the Ballon d’Or award this year:

5. Thomas Muller

4. Lionel Messi

3. Kevin de Bruyne

2. Cristiano Ronaldo

1. Robert Lewandowski

Surprisingly, Messi, the 2019 Ballon d’Or winner, did not even make the top 3. The Barcelona captain has been stuck with 699 career goals and has gone three consecutive matches without scoring. Messi is aiming to reach an incredible career milestone this season and is only one goal away from making it happen.

Ronaldo, on the other hand, had a rusty start after the lengthy break caused by the coronavirus pandemic. However, the Portuguese icon managed to bounce back and has now scored in his last two Serie A appearances. Ronaldo is still the most dominant player in Italy and a major factor for Juventus as they close in on a Serie A title this year.

Many are convinced that if the 35-year-old can lead the Old Lady to Champions League glory, he could also once again equal Messi in terms of Ballon d’Or awards.

Meanwhile, Bayern Munich’s Lewandowski has proven that he is on another level this year. After scoring his 34th goal of the season against Wolfsburg, the Polish striker secured the Bundesliga’s Golden Boot for the third consecutive year. He has also been Bundesliga’s top scorer for the fifth time.

Following his unparalleled season with Bayern, the club’s current chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge hailed Lewandowski as the best in the world, saying, "To score 34 goals in one Bundesliga season is an incredible achievement. I'd like to congratulate and thank Robert Lewandowski. He's the best centre-forward in the world."