Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have won eleven Ballon d’Or titles together, but in the pursuit of the crown in 2021, both aim to achieve something that only six players have achieved in the past. It was a unique summer for both modern football superstars, both players on the road. It was the first time Messi left Barcelona when he joined PSG, while Cristiano Ronaldo joined Manchester United after a three-year stint at Juventus. class=”h4 primary-title mb-0 pb-0″> In fact, only four players on the 30-strong Ballon d’Or 2021 shortlist have completed transfers this summer. All strive to be a club of only join six players who moved over the course of a year and then won the award . It’s an achievement that no player has achieved in 15 years since Fabio Cannavaro’s 2006 win when he left Juventus to join Real Madrid after an outstanding performance at the World Cup. Ronaldo – the Brazilian version – received the award in 2002 when he joined Real Madrid from Inter. Like Cannavaro, he had been decisive at the World Cup in the summer. Uniquely, Ronaldo won the award twice on a summer transfer after doing so in 1997 when he moved to San Siro from Barcelona. 
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The Ballon d’Or winners change in the middle of the year
The only other player to have accomplished this feat in the 21st century is Luis Figo, who made the controversial move from Barcelona to Real Madrid in the summer of 2000.
Messi, meanwhile, is hoping to become only the second PSG player to win the Ballon d’Or while representing the club. Previously, the great George Weah accepted the award in 1995 after leaving Paris in the middle of the year to move to Milan.
In 1987 Milan had won another superstar to win the Ballon d’Or when they signed Ruud Gullit from PSV.
The first player to achieve this remarkable feat was the great Johan Cruyff, whose move from Ajax to Barcelona in 1973 fundamentally changed the history of football.
Messi and Ronaldo are therefore trying to join an elite group of players
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