Chapter 379: The 68th Ballon d'Or Awards Ceremony, the final segment, Messi once again stepped onto the podium...
After a day's rest, Cesco and Kva also took the opportunity to join the national team, leaving Chen Xiaoliang at the Carrington base to train with youth players and a few first-team players for a few days. The 15-year-old Ibragimov benefited a lot.
Although he had started training with the first team in the second half of last season, he was too young to participate in some confrontational exercises. He also had to participate in the reserve team league with the U18 team and could not come to Chen Xiaoliang's extra training every day.
The only difference is that there was no one in the extra training team these days. He and several friends from the youth training team accompanied Chen Xiaoliang to practice his personal skills, and he learned a lot.
However, on October 28, even Chen Xiaoliang had to bid farewell to the Carrington Base for a short time.
It was still him, his sisters, and David, a four-member team. They flew to Paris in the morning to attend the Golden Globe Awards ceremony for the third time.
On the Internet in various countries, the debate about who is more qualified to win the Golden Globe has reached a boiling point.
When Ronaldo left for the Saudi League and Messi returned to Barcelona but had to start rotating players to save his strength, the fans who were reluctant to see the era of Messi and Ronaldo pass, especially Messi's fans, still firmly supported their idol to win the eighth Golden Ball in his career and evolve from the seventh Messi to the eighth Messi.
And everyone also realizes that due to the intensive schedule, Messi cannot start every game in the club. Unless Barcelona performs explosively this season and his personal data also explodes, this will be Messi's last chance to get close to winning the Golden Ball.
In particular, they also see the rise of young people.
Mbappe has scored 12 goals in two World Cups, won a championship and a runner-up, and already has a pass to be crowned the king of football. What he lacks is strong performance and championships at the club level.
In contrast to him, Chen Xiaoliang and Haaland had super strong performances in the club, and reached a crossroads on the road to the treble, and finally achieved the first treble of the two.
It is true that faced with the strong rise of the younger generation, the heroes of the older generation could not defeat the passage of time, but whether it is seven or five Ballon d'Or awards, they are enough to be forever engraved in the annals of football and shine on all those who come after them.
However, where there are supporters, there are also opponents. Some of Ronaldo's supporters certainly push Chen Xiaoliang to win the award, not to mention the fans in the Red Country. Many Messi fans in the Red Country posted the slogan "Messi will always be the king of football in my heart, so I support Chen Xiaoliang to win the Golden Ball Award" on social media.
Faced with the situation where two players have the same odds for the first time, the media has also done enough groundwork. Various data comparisons and honors comparisons from last season, as well as wonderful shots and highlights have bombarded fans' mobile phones, computers, and TV screens in the past few days.
As if to bring the suspense to the final climax and ignite it, neither the parent company EPA Group, nor the L'Equipe, nor the organizer France Football magazine, kept their mouths shut this time and did not reveal any inside information in advance. Even after Chen Xiaoliang arrived at the hotel in the afternoon and met with the host Drogba, Drogba told Chen Xiaoliang that there were two versions of his script, one from Messi and one from Chen Xiaoliang, and the final answer would be told to him half an hour before the ceremony began, and at that time he was already preparing backstage in the theater, and mobile phones and other communication equipment were not allowed to be brought in according to the confidentiality agreement.
Spain is relatively close to France, so Messi did not arrive until the next morning. The organizer also sent staff to take Messi and Chen Xiaoliang through the award-winning process one after another.
Now, the suspense will really last until the last moment.
However, unlike Chen Xiaoliang, Messi is very familiar with the Golden Ball award-winning process. The only difference is that the process may be slightly different every year, with a highlight reel, a few designed jokes, and the podium being on the left, right or in the middle, and the route being changed.
However, the two men, who both disliked the post-ceremony cocktail party, had agreed to return to the hotel, change into casual clothes, and then go to the pizza restaurant to relax.
Chen Xiaoliang couldn't help but feel lucky that he had met Messi in a pizza restaurant. If it was in a hamburger restaurant... Thinking of this, he couldn't help but burp again...
The live broadcast of the ceremony began at 8 p.m. Hong Kong time, 2 p.m. Paris time, and Penguin Sports sent reporters to broadcast the entire process on site.
There were some football forums in the afternoon, where famous players like Davor Suker, Eto'o and Maldini, who became presidents of various national football associations or senior club officials after retirement, discussed topics such as youth training, echelon construction and sustainable development of clubs.
Outside the court, stars kept coming to the temporary rest area or appearing in the reporters' cameras.
Bellingham is here, and he ranks in the top three in this year's Copa Award rankings along with Gavi and Musiala.
Haaland is here too. Unlike Chen Xiaoliang, he has already secured the best forward award of this year's Ballon d'Or - the Gerd Muller Award - with an ultra-low odds of 1 to 0.5.
Of course, the French have not forgotten their own pride . Although Mbappe has missed out on various awards based on the odds, in his home stadium, the local media still focused the center and the camera on this French darling.
At 6:30 in the evening, the players began to enter the venue one after another. Just like those film festivals, the stars dressed up to attend the event, either accompanied by their teammates or their partners, walked on the red carpet, surrounded by hundreds of cameras and flashes.
"Ohhhh! Here it comes!"
Someone in the crowd shouted something in French, although reporters from all countries turned their cameras to look towards the entrance.
It's Messi!
But this time he appeared with the club's young player Gavi.
Many fans expressed disappointment:
[It’s over, it’s over. It looks like there’s no hope. Even Antonella didn’t show up. It looks like she’s already received the notice and it’s just a formality.]
[I can only congratulate Chen Xiaoliang, although I still think he is still young]
…
However, when being interviewed at the end of the red carpet, when asked by reporters whether he would receive the award, Messi said:
"Antonella is at home with the three children, and Thiago has had a cold recently. We are afraid that the fatigue of bringing him here will slow down his recovery."
"I believe today will be an important day for me, a day full of honor and special significance."
Messi, who doesn't like talking in front of the camera, said this and turned into the Chatelet Theater.
His fans immediately "turned from cloudy to sunny":
[Fuck, is Messi hinting at this? ]
[Explicit, what kind of hint?]
[It seems that Mei Lao Ba is really going to be the one! ]
…
After a while, Haaland also came to the red carpet. Next to him was his father, Alfinger Haaland, who was born in Stavanger, Norway.
Behind him is De Bruyne. As a top midfielder who has always appeared in the top 10 of the Ballon d'Or in recent years, although De Bruyne is destined to miss the Ballon d'Or itself, he is also an indispensable figure in this annual grand ceremony.
He was accompanied by his wife Michelle. Although Michelle had nothing to do with the Brother Gate incident, every time reporters saw De Bruyne and his partner appear, they would whisper: "Where is Courtois? Why hasn't he come yet?"
Before Courtois could get his chance, the flashes started flashing again like a starburst in the galaxy.
"Chen Xiaoliang is here!!! Chen Xiaoliang is here!!!"
Chen Xiaoliang appeared on the red carpet in formal attire. The official makeup artist spent more than three hours in the hotel room in the afternoon to dress him up from head to toe, just for this moment.
However, as Chen Xiaoliang walked, he found that the camera followed him for a while and then stopped following him.
But he was not surprised, because the two people walking behind him were two beautiful women who looked almost identical but were stunningly beautiful enough to captivate a whole country.
Behind the sisters was David, who was specially invited by Chen Xiaoliang and enjoyed superstar treatment.
According to the official invitation rules, the main award winners can bring their relatives, friends, family members or team staff to participate, ranging from one to four. As for who to bring, the official does not care. However, this treatment is only for the main award winners, so that they can reunite and celebrate after winning the award. Other participants will not have this treatment.
Against the backdrop of the sisters, Chen Xiaoliang was always the focus of the audience, from the red carpet to the theater.
He still remembers the first time he came here to receive the Copa Award two years ago. He was totally at a loss. Facing the room full of superstars and legends waiting in the lobby outside the theater, he didn't know who to greet.
However, now, no matter whether they are active players or legendary stars, they will take the initiative to show their friendship to him when they see him, and the wives of many stars will even give him a kiss on the cheek to show their respect.
But there are exceptions.
"Hey!"
Chen Xiaoliang only felt someone hugging him from behind and shouted excitedly.
He wondered who would be so silly in such an occasion, but before he turned around, a pungent and familiar scent of perfume hit his nose, revealing the answer.
Paulo Dybala, the current most handsome man in Paris Saint-Germain, has a sexy appearance and naturally deserves a sexy perfume.
The vote on [Who do you think Dybala admires the most, Chen Xiaoliang or Messi] is also one of the hottest events among Internet fans nowadays.
"You fucking bastard..." Chen Xiaoliang turned around and started tickling the guy, which immediately attracted everyone around to pick up their phones to take pictures.
After the play, the two hugged each other happily. Dybala looked at Chen Xiaoliang, who looked a little more mature, and sighed: "Oh, it turns out that I am the lucky star. I actually played football with three Golden Ball winners."
Chen Xiaoliang: "Don't talk nonsense, who said I'm going to win the Golden Globe Award?"
Dybala smiled mysteriously and pointed his thumb behind him. Chen Xiaoliang looked and saw an old man with short white hair in casual clothes, looking at him with a smile.
Chen Xiaoliang immediately walked up and gave him a big hug!
"After watching your games, I think your performance in the new season is really good."
Mourinho patted Chen Xiaoliang on the face and said, "Are you bragging about yourself? Don't let down the team in the Champions League. I'm waiting to make you regret going to Manchester United."
Chen Xiaoliang: "How can a teacher curse a student..."
Mourinho laughed: "Who can curse you, a pervert? If you are not good, you can still stand here? I told Paul that the award tonight must be yours."
The two chatted for a while, and Chen Xiaoliang saw Mbappe nearby and asked Mourinho if he wanted to go and say hello. Mourinho quickly stopped him:
"Stop it. This guy hates you the most right now. He hates whoever has a higher Ballon d'Or odds than him. Don't go and make yourself miserable."
Someone came over to say hello to Mourinho, who finally said, "I'll wait for you in the Champions League."
Chen Xiaoliang responded with a chuckle.
As you came over to talk and he came over to chat, time passed quickly, and everyone entered the theater in an orderly manner according to their seats. Chen Xiaoliang and Messi, Haaland, De Bruyne, Courtois, Dybala and others sat in the middle seats of the first row.
The Golden Globe Awards has maintained a usual operation in recent years, that is, before the final award is announced, the lists of 21st to 30th, 11th to 20th, 4th to 10th will be announced successively, and finally the top three will be announced on the spot.
In this year's list, De Bruyne, Mbappe, B Silva, Dybala, Rodri, Lewandowski and Vinicius ranked 4-10, Kva ranked 16th, and Cesco also entered the top 30 for the first time, ranking 27th.
Rashford and Casemiro from Manchester United also made the list, one ranked 21st and the other 25th.
Manchester City is clearly the biggest winner, with Grealish, Dias, Ederson, Kyle Walker and Akanji, a total of eight players ranked in the top 30, not counting Gundogan who has transferred to Barcelona this season.
There was an opening speech first. The hosts were still the regular combination of Drogba and French female journalist Sandy Herribert. The two gave a welcome speech and briefly reviewed the major events in football last season, and then began the formal award ceremony.
After a few video clips, the data and highlights of several Copa Trophy winners were introduced. Chen Xiaoliang was very familiar with this, as it was the starting point of his dream.
After a while, Matthäus came on the court, picked up the Copa Award trophy from the trophy stand, and the image of Bellingham appeared on the screen.
The 2023 Kopa Award (Best U21 Player) was awarded to Jude Bellingham, an English player who played for Dortmund last season and Manchester City this season!
Next is the Gerd Muller Award (Best Forward), which is the least suspenseful award of the night. No matter what is said on the stage, the camera is always facing Haaland with long flowing hair.
Unsurprisingly, he scored a total of 60 goals in all competitions of the season, including national team matches, and won 2 championships.
The 2023 Gerd Muller Award is awarded to Manchester City's Norwegian player Erling Haaland!
Young Haaland walked up and took the trophy from Raul, and the first person he thanked was old Haaland.
Old Haaland never dreamed that he, a rough guy who played as a defender, was responsible for throwing grenades on the sidelines and out-of-bounds balls in the 1994 World Cup, and had never even touched the side of a top club in his life, could train such a talented and powerful striker.
Fortunately, the two people's almost identical appearance told him that they were definitely their biological children, and there was no doubt that Mr. Wang next door had made extra contributions.
Next, the Yashin Award (Best Goalkeeper) was awarded to Manchester City's Brazilian player Ederson. Although De Gea won the Premier League Golden Glove last season, Manchester City was the team with the fewest goals conceded in the Premier League and the Champions League.
Next was the Socrates Award (Humanitarian Care Award). The odds of this award deviated from the handicap, which surprised Chen Xiaoliang. It was awarded to his Manchester United teammate Rashford!
Originally, the person with the highest odds for this award was Chen Xiaoliang! It was said that the Golden Ball Organizing Committee wanted to commend him for his contribution to the exchange of football between Asia and Europe, and for his holding companies' continued supply of cheap natural gas during the days of natural gas shortage.
After Rashford came on stage, he waved to Chen Xiaoliang, who also received the notice at the last minute and rushed over from the national team.
Coming from the slums, he has helped provide 2.8 million free lunches for poor children in the UK. Just like Mane who won the award last year, although Rashford's award has no direct connection with competitive sports, it made all the guests in the audience applaud him for one minute.
Manchester United CEO Edwin van der Sar, who was sitting in the back row to attend the ceremony, was also very happy. This award has a very positive effect on the club's image.
Next is the selection of the Women's Ballon d'Or.
Spanish player Putellas from Barcelona made history again by winning the La Liga and Champions League double last season and won the Women's Ballon d'Or for the third consecutive year.
Barrage:
[This woman is amazing... the female soccer king, no, the queen...]
[She also plays in the midfield, a position similar to Chen Xiaoliang]
[Please don't be so naughty, keep a low profile! ]
…
Drogba reviewed last season's World Cup, the top five leagues and the Champions League, with famous scenes from those matches playing on the screen as he reviewed.
Soon, highlights from last season for the final three appeared on the screen.
First of all, Messi achieved a big double-double at the club level, with more than 20 goals and assists, and most importantly, won the World Cup and became the champion! In the FIFA annual selection in the first half of this year, he was named the best player of 2022.
The second is Haaland, who scored a total of 60 goals, sweeping the Premier League and the Champions League with Manchester City, and breaking the single-season goal record in the Champions League and the Premier League. In the end, he was just a little bit short of the Champions League trophy and was blocked by the magical Chen Xiaoliang.
Although he has won the Gerd Muller Award, which is a bit of a consolation, and is definitely out of the running for the Ballon d'Or, everyone knows that Haaland's era has arrived.
Finally, there is Chen Xiaoliang, who was 19 years and 20 days old. As the captain and absolute core, he led Roma to win the Champions League with a hat trick and a winning assist after dribbling past five players. In the absence of national team games, he scored 36 goals and had 36 assists in the season, breaking the single-season assist record in Serie A and the Champions League, achieving the eighth triple crown in European football. He accomplished a feat that no great player in the past could have achieved at the same age.
Suddenly, the screen went dark!
Chen Xiaoliang's heart couldn't stop beating!
At this point, it is absolutely impossible to say that there is no expectation!
Drogba on the field looked at this and that, smiling at everyone without giving any hints. Suddenly, his partner Sandy Herribert invited Messi to play!
"Huh..." Chen Xiaoliang breathed a sigh of relief. Not winning the award was not unexpected to him. The Treble and the World Cup have different standards in the eyes of different people. Coupled with Messi's legendary aura and status in football, it is reasonable for reporters from various countries to add a little emotional point.
At least he was no longer nervous at this time. He immediately joined everyone else in the theater in giving Messi thunderous applause!
Perhaps feeling that just sitting and clapping was not enough, Chen Xiaoliang stood up.
He thought to himself, this is the 8th Ballon d’Or. Even if he won it every year, he had to wait eight years. He must pay the highest respect to it.
When he stood up, everyone else in the theater also stood up and applauded.
Messi walked onto the stage, smiling, and stood behind the pedestal where the Ballon d'Or trophy was placed. He reached out and patted the football-shaped trophy that he was very familiar with and already owned seven of.
The two hosts seemed a little surprised by the scene, but were very moved by the enthusiasm of the guests.
Drogba raised his hands to signal the audience to be quiet, then picked up the inscription card in his hand and said solemnly:
"Please invite World Cup champion and seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi to present the award to the player who won the Ballon d'Or for the 2022-23 season!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the theater screen lit up!
Chen Xiaoliang and everyone else were stunned and looked at the screen!
A man wearing the No. 33 jersey leaped high from the penalty area and smashed his teammate’s pass into Manchester City’s goal like Cristiano Ronaldo;
At this time, applause and cheers have already sounded!
Afterwards, there was a scene where he dribbled the ball from the backcourt, passed six players in a row, and then made a straight pass under the opponent's crotch, assisting the opponent to win the Champions League final!
At that moment, the sisters sitting in the middle area of the theater could not help hugging each other, crying, and screaming, while David, who was always serious and earnest, carefully wiped away the tears that flowed from the corners of his eyes while applauding.
Also wiping tears were Mourinho, who was also at the venue, and Gerrard, who was watching on TV and did not attend the venue because he was overwhelmed by his new club.
These people have watched Chen Xiaoliang grow from a kid who could only make tackles and was afraid to make long passes or carry the ball too much, to the best player in the world standing at the top of the football world.
Chen Xiaoliang swallowed hard, and then his legs seemed to lose control and he didn't know how he walked onto the stage.
Messi held up the trophy and handed it to Chen Xiaoliang with a smile. The guests standing in the audience burst into continuous applause and cheers.
It is for both the creators of the new era and the kings of the previous era.
"I...I thought it was his, so I stood up and applauded..."
The whole place had just quieted down and everyone had sat down, and Chen Xiaoliang's first acceptance speech made the audience burst into laughter.
The camera swept across the first row. Messi, De Bruyne, B Silva, and Haaland all had very expectant expressions, while Bellingham, Gavi and others seemed a little reluctant and envious.
Only Mbappe had a blank expression and looked indifferent.
"There are too many people to thank, my coaches, Gerrard, Mourinho, Ten Hag, my teammates, Cesco, Kva, Dybala who came here today, my assistants, McAllister, Forti, my agent Riise, there are too many to thank, I can't mention them all one by one."
He paused and pointed to the seats in the middle area of the theater.
"Of course, Helena, I can't miss you! Without her, my life in Europe would have been a mess."
Chen Xiaoliang has become so famous that his and Helena's life is no longer a secret.
Helena in the stands had already burst into tears of joy.
"But what I want to thank most are the opponents I met on the court, starting with Callum, to Milinkovic-Savic, Barella, Chiesa, to Kimmich, Henderson, Kante, then De Bruyne, B Silva, Haaland, including the respected Lionel Messi. It is because of your stimulation on the court that I have the motivation to constantly break through myself day after day."
"Really, I salute you, you are all the greatest opponents."
“Pah pah pah pah…”
Such high-class and broad-minded words naturally won applause from the audience.
"Finally, who said that yellow people can't win the Golden Globe? Today I will prove to everyone that I am the Golden Globe winner!"
"I am 19 years old this year. Please come and witness my future with the whole world!"
After saying that, Chen Xiaoliang raised the Golden Globe Award trophy with his left hand.
The camera was very clever. It first stared at the confident and slightly weathered Messi for a while, then Mbappe who clapped his hands casually to maintain the necessary demeanor, and Haaland who was as excited as he was to win the award, then it zoomed out to look down at the entire field, and finally the camera returned to Chen Xiaoliang.
After the Ballon d'Or went to another team for two consecutive years, this move has completely ended an era of football, and another era has arrived!
