“He deserved 13 Golden Balls.” Has Messi been wronged in his career?

Former Saudi Arabia star Abdo Atif has reignited the debate over Argentina’s Lionel Messi’s individual awards after insisting the tango captain deserves far more Ballon d’Or awards than he has won in his career.

Atif’s comments came after Messi’s remarkable performance against Austria, where he scored twice to lead Argentina to a 2-0 victory and a place in the round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup. He also became the all-time leading scorer at the World Cup with 18 goals, overtaking Germany’s Miroslav Klose.

“One of God’s blessings on me is that I lived in Messi’s time,” before making a statement that sparked much controversy, saying: “I don’t know how the star only got 8 Golden Balls, he should get 12 or 13” on the channel.

Numbers open the door to questions

Atif’s comments brought to the fore the old debate about how many times Messi deserves to be crowned Ballon d’Or, especially since the Argentine star has been at the summit for more than 20 years, setting records for goals, assists, team and individual titles.

A large section of Messi’s fans believe that some of the versions in which he lost the award deserved to be reconsidered, especially in years when he performed at exceptional levels with Barcelona or Argentina, while other rivals won the award.

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Behind Messi is his arch-rival Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid’s all-time top scorer with 5 Ballon d’Or as the rivalry between them ran from 2008 to 2018, before the Argentine star completes his ascension to the footballing throne.

Maradona found waste

Atif did not stop talking only about the Ballon d’Or, but also mentioned that the late legend Diego Maradona was the reason why Messi missed a great opportunity during the 2010 World Cup.

The former Saudi Arabia star said Maradona damaged Messi when he took over as Argentina coach, whether it was because of the huge pressure on him or the technical management of the tournament, considering this edition was one of the missed opportunities in the tango captain’s career.

As Messi continues to make history at the 2026 World Cup and set one record after another, the question remains among soccer fans. Was getting 8 Ballon d’Ors enough for a career as exceptional as the Argentinian star’s, or did history not give him all he truly deserved?