Cristiano Ronaldo's only ambition is to win more Ballons d’Or than Lionel Messi, France Football editor Pascal Ferre has claimed.
Ronaldo, who is currently taking in a second spell at Manchester United, has lifted the coveted Golden Ball five times over the course of his illustrious career - one less than Paris Saint-Germain's Messi.
Both men are in the running for the prize again this year, and Ferre has revealed that Ronaldo is driven to eclipse his great rival before he finally hangs up his boots.
Is Ronaldo's Ballons d'Or ambition driven by Messi?
The Ballon d'Or is handed out by France Football, and the publication's editor-in-chief says the Portuguese striker has told him that the award means more to him than team trophies at this stage of his career.
"Ronaldo has only one ambition and that is to retire with more Ballon d'Or [awards] than Messi," Ferre told the New York Times. "I know because he has told me."
MORE: What is Ronaldo's path to the 2022 World Cup?
Will Ronaldo beat Messi for the award this year?
Ronaldo is being billed as something of an underdog in the 2021 Ballon d'Or vote, despite scoring 36 goals in all competitions and lifting the Coppa Italia in his final season at Juventus.
The 36-year-old has also become the highest-scoring men's player in international football history with Portugal, but Messi, Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema are considered to be the frontrunners for the Golden Ball this time around.
It was even reported earlier this month that former Barcelona captain Messi had already been informed of his record-extending success after finally ending his wait for international silverware at the Copa America with Argentina.
However, Ferre quickly came out to rubbish those claims, telling BILD: "That's a lot of bullsh*t we've seen in the past 10 days. A big bluff.”
