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Cesc Fabregas Reveals Player He Thinks Should Have Won The Ballon d'Or

Cesc Fabregas Reveals Player He Thinks Should Have Won The Ballon d'Or

The Monaco midfielder has played with some of the best of all time, including six time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi.

Ryan Sidle

Ryan Sidle

Cesc Fabregas has said that Andres Iniesta is the one player he would have liked to see win the Ballon d'Or who never got his hands on the illustrious trophy.

For a decade the Ballon d'Or got passed between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and even when other players should have got their hands on it they couldn't come close.

Wesley Sneijder and Manuel Neuer were two of the most blatant omissions of recent times but, in a Twitter Q&A, former Barcelona midfielder Fabregas said that his former teammate Iniesta was the one player most deserving.

The 35-year-old, now plying his trade in Japan with Vissel Kobe, has twice finished in the top three for the award and came runner up to teammate Mess in 2010.

He was only 5% behind the six time winner that year and arguably should have beaten his teammate after helping lead Spain to their first World Cup triumph, scoring the winner in the final in extra time, from Fabregas' assist, and winning the Man of the Match award against Netherlands.

During his Twitter Q&A, Fabregas was also asked which coach taught him the most in his career and the former Arsenal captain explained it was both Arsene Wenger and Antonio Conte, saying, "Really taught me in different moments and for different reason (not only footballing)... I would say Wenger and Conte. Arsene technically and Conte mentally and he also made a player that I didn't know I could be."

Asked what he meant by being the player he didn't he could be, Cesc added, "I meant on the defensive point of view, also mentally he made me work harder than ever at 29 as he told me I wasn't his type of player and still went on to prove him wrong and ended up playing every game. Tactically you have to play the way he likes and that was also very new for me."

Fabregas and Iniesta playing together for Spain. Image: PA Images
Fabregas and Iniesta playing together for Spain. Image: PA Images

Asked if he'd rather win the World Cup or Champions League the 32-year-old revealed that not winning Europe's biggest club prize was his biggest regret, "The World Cup obviously. But not winning the Champions League will always be my biggest regret. At least I managed to play the final and live a fantastic experience."

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