Fifteen years ago, a defender received the golden ball

Fifteen years ago, a central defender was awarded the golden ball. Things have changed a lot since then. Reflection.

2006. A year that seems to us, today, buried in the twists and turns of history. That year, Frank Riijkard’s Barcelona won the Champions Cup at the Stade de France against Arsenal (2-1).

However, neither Eto’o nor Ronaldinho were awarded the most prestigious individual title. In 2006, an Italian central defender was honored: Fabio Cannavaro.

The reign of statistics

Since then, only players with an attacking profile have won awards. And not very much, since the football world has subsequently witnessed the explosion of two legends, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo who, between them, have dominated twelve years of the prestigious competition.

Now, if we take the fourteen remaining years and subtract 12 from them, only … two remain.

Goals and passes dice

Besides the duo of “extraterrestrials”, there was first Kaká (2007), then Luka Modric. The Croatian, semi-finalist of the World Cup in 2018, was obviously rewarded for all his work, but more particularly for his goals and the assists he gave to his teammates.

To imagine a player with a defensive profile lifting the sesame these days seems almost improbable. The media and, more particularly, the “big voters” for the attribution of the reward, seem obsessed by the only figures.

How many goals scored, how many assists issued? Two questions that come up and keep coming back. A less quantifiable contribution, and yet just as decisive no longer seems to interest footballers.

Was it really better before?

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