Dani Alves: Ronaldo shouldn’t even be shortlisted for the Ballon d’Or

The Ballon d’Or seems to have a poison all of its own.

It used to a simple if prestigious award for the player deemed to be the best in the world for that particular year. Nice, but largely just a gesture of appreciation. No more. Now it is the all-consuming symbol of personal ambition in a team sport. Rival fans bicker over it; players covet it with indecent zeal; fellow pros partake in unbecoming politics over it. Barca's Dani Alves is not particularly loved by Real Madrid, and the feeling is extremely mutual. Still, you'd expect a level of magnanimity between feuding foes. Sadly not, because in his desire to ensure one of his Camp Nou teammates nabs the ego-inflating globe, the Brazilian has claimed Cristiano Ronaldo shouldn't even be in the running. That's right - he's not saying the Real Madrid talisman isn't deserving of the award - he reckons Ronaldo shouldn't even be considered as a finalist. "Messi is a bit ahead, because of his influence on the game," explains Alves. "I think at this moment, Neymar is second best in the world." His reason why Ronaldo isn't worthy of sharing a stage with the Barca duo? He's only about finding the back of the net. "Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t deserve to be among the Ballon d’Or finalists. It’s not only about scoring goals." Nice one, Dani. Stay classy.