Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo once again decided against selecting Lionel Messi as one of his top three players in world football over the course of 2021.
The duo have competed for the top individual prizes in football for almost 15 years now, but have rarely voted for each other during that time.
Ballon d'Or winner Messi made it into the final three for The Best FIFA Men's Player of the Year award this year, with Ronaldo missing out as Robert Lewandowski and Mohamed Salah completed the trio.
However, Ronaldo, who is entitled to a vote due to his position as captain of Portugal, opted against selecting Messi as one of the top three players in 2021, instead choosing eventual winner Lewandowski as his first pick.
Chelsea duo N'Golo Kante and Jorginho, both of whom helped the Blues to Champions League glory last year, also made Ronaldo's top three.
Ronaldo was also excluded by Messi in his pick for the top three players as the Argentina captain chose Paris Saint-Germain teammates Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, as well as former Clasico rival Karim Benzema.
Barney Corkhill
