Ground football: Ronaldo thought I was going to assist him

While breaking the record for the youngest player in the Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist, he also broke the record for the youngest player in the Ballon d'Or top 10 shortlist!

This is an incredible record that he himself will never be able to break in the future!

Deng Kai received sixteen points in the final vote, the same as the other three players who ranked behind him.

It's more accurate to call it seventh than tenth!

The reason for its low ranking is purely due to its seniority.

In fact... if this weren't the first time Deng Kai had come into the public eye, his achievements this year would have easily earned him a Globe Award.

Six-time champion, six-time MVP, that's how terrifying they are!

But in any industry, seniority plays a significant role.

This is not simply a matter of seniority, but a reflection of influence.

When a star player's reputation is at its peak, they have often already passed their prime and entered a period of decline; this is the reason why.

Let the bullets fly is a very important thing.

Don't think that focusing on seniority is a bad habit; an assessment that combines seniority and ability is often the most reliable.

Judging solely by performance records, it's easy for this year's strongest player to fail to make the list next year. One or two times might be acceptable, but over time, the list will lose its credibility.

Therefore, theoretically, it is very difficult for a player who is on the list for the first time to enter the top 20.

But Deng Kai broke this unspoken rule.

They broke into the top ten on their very first try.

If Figo hadn't taken some of the votes, he might have made it into the top five!

No, Figo just split some of the votes.

As fellow Portuguese stars, those who didn't vote for Deng Kai due to seniority would mostly choose to cast some votes for Figo to maintain balance, which could be considered a relatively fair approach.

This allowed Figo to break into the top five for the Ballon d'Or despite his relatively mediocre performance last season and the presence of other superstars sharing the spotlight.

At the red carpet registration area, as is customary, the host handed the microphone to Deng Kai, asking him to share his excitement.

Deng Kai: "It was unexpected to achieve such a high ranking when I was first shortlisted for the Ballon d'Or. My success over the past year has been dependent on the team's success, which constantly reminds me to do more for the team."

"At the same time, I would also like to congratulate this year's Ballon d'Or winner in advance."

The host asked, "Who do you think is a possibility?"

The top five will not walk the red carpet, but will instead arrive at the venue directly.

By observing the red carpet list, everyone already knew who the top five were.

Kahn, Raul, Beckham, Figo, and Totti—the Ballon d'Or will be awarded to one of these five.

Deng Kai: "To be honest, there was only one team that was truly dominant in all of Europe last year, and that was Sporting Lisbon. Of course, I'm not saying I deserved the Ballon d'Or; I know I still have a lot to learn and grow."

"What I mean is, I think it's reasonable for Raul, Kahn, Beckham, or Figo to win the Ballon d'Or, and they all truly deserve it."

Totti: ...

You didn't mention my name at all in the top five.

So you're going to hate Serie A forever, huh?

Why don't we deserve the Ballon d'Or if Roma, after all the hard work to win the Serie A title, deserve it?

Deng Kai: Mainly because Batistuta gave you too many votes.

Totti: Raul, Figo, and Zidane don't get votes, right?

Deng Kai's words won a lot of applause.

He didn't become arrogant, but he also pointed out the difference between himself and the average tenth-place finisher in the Ballon d'Or.

Her emotional intelligence is off the charts.

Many people view Deng Kai in this way.

Only Zidane, Guardiola, and Matthäus, watching on television, raised an eyebrow.

Zidane instinctively felt that the order of the player names that Deng Kai had just mentioned seemed to have a hidden meaning...

After the "Spain vs. Germany European Championship ranking prediction" incident, Guardiola and Matthäus gained a clear understanding of Deng Kai.

This dogcoin is almost certainly lost.

Could the ranking he just mentioned be... the Golden Globe Award order of succession?

"Okay, thank you, Deng Kai. This way, please... Now, let's welcome the player who finished ninth in this year's Ballon d'Or to the red carpet. He is... Juan Sebastián Veron!"

The ninth place finisher in the Golden Globe Awards was a major upset.

White Wizard Belon.

There wouldn't have been any problem with his name being listed here before the start of this season.

Of course, the name Mendieta is also fine here.

However, both Veron and Mendieta suffered setbacks with their new clubs this season.

Veron is alright; although he hasn't met the fans' expectations, he hasn't been completely proven to be a flop.

Mendieta, thanks to Duncan and Sporting Lisbon, is already preparing for his next move.

This is also why Mendieta was not included in this year's 30-man shortlist for the Golden Globe Award.

Lazio's elimination from the Champions League, especially their final Champions League match, was a huge blow.

It's worth noting that at this time last year, Mendieta was only eighth in the Ballon d'Or rankings!

Many fans watching on television expressed their incomprehension regarding Veron's inflated ranking.

In fact, Veron's ranking is not particularly high.

Or rather, compared to Deng Kai, who is ranked tenth, who among the top nine in this year's Ballon d'Or is not overrated?

The eighth-place finisher for the Ballon d'Or is Thierry Henry from Arsenal.

Last season, Henry made 35 league appearances and scored 17 goals. He also made 18 appearances in various cup competitions, scoring 5 goals, helping Arsenal to a runner-up finish in the Premier League, a runner-up finish in the FA Cup, and a place in the Champions League quarterfinals.

He was selected for the UEFA Team of the Year and the UEFA Team of the Year.

Especially in the clash between Arsenal and Manchester United a few days ago, he scored the crucial go-ahead goal, helping Arsenal defeat Manchester United.

Some fans have said that this could very well be Arsenal's greatest goal of the season.

Manchester United had won the Premier League title for the previous three years, while Arsenal had finished as runners-up for three consecutive years.

The seventh-place finisher for the Ballon d'Or was Zinedine Zidane, the former Juventus superstar from Real Madrid.

This ranking is a bit inflated, which is largely due to his transfer to Real Madrid in the summer.

The sixth place goes to Shevchenko from AC Milan.

The red carpet ceremony has now concluded.

The camera then panned to the arena.

The fifth person to win this year's Ballon d'Or has been announced, and it is indeed Francesco Totti, the "Wolf King" from Roma.

Although Roma won the Serie A title last season, this is still the best Ballon d'Or ranking Totti could achieve.

This isn't Totti's ceiling, but it's Roma's ceiling.

The fourth place winner of the Ballon d'Or is Luís Figo, the Portuguese superstar from Real Madrid.

Figo and Totti received very close votes, both in the fifties but less than sixty.

Figo's advantage lies in the fact that many judges, out of conscience, gave him the votes that should have been given to Deng Kai, but his disadvantage is that Real Madrid brought in Zidane, a transfer that was even more sensational than his joining Real Madrid last year.

Real Madrid's award resources will naturally be allocated to the French.

Moreover... most importantly, Real Madrid's own golden boy Raul has a very good chance of winning the Ballon d'Or.

[P.S.: 5 PM update. We're less than 300 monthly votes short of 2000, what a pity... For every 1000 monthly votes, Peach (the author) can hold a prize draw next month, usually giving away 100 or 200 yuan in cash, which is a benefit from Qidian (the author's platform). If we only get 1700 votes, 700 will be wasted, it's really heartbreaking. Next month, we'll save 100!]

[If any big shot can give me two hundred monthly votes, I'll stay home and update 10,000 words a day, and stop going to argue with the cicada over marriage certificate?]

I like playing football on the ground: Ronaldo thought I was going to assist him.