Lionel Messi replied to Ballon d'Or host who questioned him in best way before he got axed

Ballon d'Or record-holder Lionel Messi had a fitting response for Didier Drogba after his footballing legacy was called into question. That's after the Chelsea icon raised doubts as to where Messi sits alongside some of the other greats of the sport.

Messi, 38, will once again be missing from the ballot on Monday when the Ballon d'Or is awarded in Paris. Last year marked the first time since 2003 that neither he nor Cristiano Ronaldo featured among the nominees, and the pair are once again not in contention for the 2025 award.

Not that Messi's reputation will be tarnished in the slightest, given that no other player quite comes close to his eight wins to date. And he had already claimed the trophy five times when Drogba, who co-hosted the Ballon d'Or between 2019 and 2024, scrutinised his standing in the sport.

"Messi could stop now and he would already have done a lot for football," the Ivory Coast icon told AFP in 2018. "To win a World Cup would make him even more legendary. He's an extraordinary player!"

On that, most football fans lucky enough to watch the player at his peak would agree. However, it was Drogba's follow-up comment comparing Messi with other greats that drew a mixed reaction: "Messi is still not at the heights of [Diego] Maradona and Pele, but he's not far away."

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Inter Miami talisman Messi went on to lift the award another three times in 2019, 2021, and 2023, the year after he finally won the World Cup with Argentina. If Drogba held doubts about Messi's talent, those feats may well have solidified his perception of the player, even compared to icons like Maradona or Pele.

And like Messi, Drogba won't be present at Monday's Ballon d'Or event in his regular capacity. That's after he and French-British journalist Sandy Heribert were replaced in the co-hosting duties they shared for the past six ceremonies.

Instead, British broadcaster Kate Scott and Chelsea legend Ruud Gullit will front the evening's action in Paris. Paris Saint-Germain's Ousmane Dembele and Barcelona's Lamine Yamal are the frontrunners to be named the 2025 Ballon d'Or winner.

It's a testament to Messi's enduring influence that he maintained his Ballon d'Or standing even after leaving Barcelona. His last two Ballons d'Or were won while he was at Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Miami.

That stands as proof it wasn't merely the legendary line-ups he often found himself part of at the Camp Nou that made him a constant contender. Moreover, that World Cup win in 2022 was the final piece some felt was lacking to truly put him above the likes of Pele or Maradona in the football annals.

Drogba's absence from the Ballon d'Or podium will have little to do with the fact that he once scrutinised Messi's standing among his fellow greats. But perhaps that didn't help his case when it came to judging arguably the best of all time.

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