Chapter 277: A New Era Begins
Chapter 277: A New Era Begins
When Kaka announced that the 2015 FIFA Ballon d'Or winner was Bruno, countless TV screens erupted with cheers.
For football fans, they had grown tired of the Messi and Ronaldo show.
For the past seven years, the FIFA Ballon d'Or, and its predecessors, the FIFA World Player of the Year and the European Ballon d'Or, had been dominated by these two. In 2008, Ronaldo won both the FIFA World Player of the Year and the European Ballon d'Or, marking the start of the era of the duo. Messi followed by winning four consecutive titles, seemingly crushing Ronaldo. However, the resilient Portuguese player made a comeback, winning back-to-back titles in 2013 and 2014, catching up with his rival.
Perhaps Messi and Ronaldo, and their fans, enjoyed this rivalry; however, for many neutral fans, this situation had become rather dull.
For seven years, they hoped someone would break this duopoly, but no one could truly shake Messi and Ronaldo's dominance. Finally, after seven years, a player named Bruno Fernandes stood up and broke their monopoly on the highest individual honor in world football.
The hall erupted in applause. In the midst of this applause, Bruno stood up from his seat and hugged Ronaldo.
Whether it was Bruno comforting Ronaldo or Ronaldo congratulating Bruno, this action showed the world that there was no conflict between them.
Then, Bruno turned to Guidolin and said, "I have to thank you especially, coach."
Guidolin hugged Bruno and whispered in his ear, "You deserve this, Bruno! You earned it!"
After their embrace, Bruno turned and walked towards the podium. The entire audience stood up and applauded him. This was the honor the number one football star of 2015 deserved.
...
Bruno walked up to the stage and shook hands with the two FIFA co-presidents present, followed by the presenter, Kaka.
After shaking hands with Kaka, Bruno received the Ballon d'Or trophy from him.
The applause continued as Bruno held the trophy, glanced at it, and then walked to the microphone to give his speech.
The applause died down, and everyone took their seats.
Bruno looked at the trophy again and then set it aside. He began, "I am very grateful to everyone who has given me this award..."
"...I must thank my team, Udinese. I know why I was able to receive this award. It is because of my teammates and coaches at Udinese that I had the opportunity to win the Champions League and the Serie A title with them. I am very happy about that!"
"I want to especially thank my coach at Udinese, Mr. Guidolin, for giving me the stage to shine. I know many media outlets have been unfair to him, but I must say, without him, there would be no me today. A team's greatest asset is always the coach, not any single player."
Bruno's words were a direct rebuttal to the media's portrayal of Udinese as Bruno's one-man team and their disregard for Guidolin's role.
The TV broadcast showed a close-up of Guidolin, who smiled and even appeared a bit shy. Clearly, he felt a bit embarrassed by his pupil's public praise in such a grand setting.
"I especially thank my family. Without them, I couldn't have persisted to this day. In fact, I almost gave up on football once. It was my parents who encouraged me and gave me the chance to stand here today to express my gratitude."
Finally, Bruno lifted the Ballon d'Or trophy high and loudly declared, "Ladies and gentlemen, I love victory, I love championships, and I love... this! I will be back next year! Thank you!"
...
With the conclusion of the FIFA Ballon d'Or, the results of the voting were also revealed. Bruno had a significant lead, receiving 41.88% of the votes, while Messi and Ronaldo received 21.17% and 9.86% respectively.
The results were not surprising. In 2015, Bruno outperformed Messi and Ronaldo both individually and in terms of team achievements.
Messi, despite having slightly better individual stats than Ronaldo, had a significant lead in votes due to Barcelona winning the La Liga and Copa del Rey, whereas Ronaldo's Real Madrid had no major trophies.
Bruno's numerous votes were also due to his team's achievements. If Barcelona or Real Madrid won the Champions League, it would be expected given their strong squads. Barcelona had stars like Neymar, Suarez, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Pique, and Alves, while Real Madrid boasted players like Bale, Benzema, Modric, Kroos, James, Ramos, and Marcelo.
Even without Messi or Ronaldo, these teams would still be favorites for the Champions League.
But what did Udinese have? Di Natale, at best, was a well-known player in Italy but not widely recognized in Europe, and he was already 38 years old. Salah, Kante, and Cancelo were not even considered second-tier stars.
...
A small team from northeastern Italy achieved glory due to Bruno's presence, winning both the Champions League and Serie A titles. Without Bruno, they wouldn't have won any major trophies.
Bruno led Udinese to victory against stronger teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona. As the team's core player, Bruno's importance was evident.
Voters clearly considered this, recognizing that leading Udinese to victory was far more challenging than doing so with Barcelona or Real Madrid. Sympathy for the underdog is a common human trait.
Thus, Bruno's triumph over Messi and Ronaldo for the 2015 FIFA Ballon d'Or was a well-deserved reward for his outstanding year.
On January 12, the Italian newspaper "Corriere della Sera" featured a praised cover with a large photo of Bruno holding the Ballon d'Or trophy at the microphone, titled "From now on, call him 'Mr. Ballon d'Or!'"
Another Italian newspaper, "Gazzetta dello Sport," had the headline "Bruno wins the 2015 FIFA Ballon d'Or, ushering in a new era in world football."
...
On the evening of January 12, at 8:45 PM local time, the fifth round of the Coppa Italia saw a rescheduled match at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. Originally scheduled for December 17, it was postponed due to Udinese's participation in the Club World Cup in Japan.
Guidolin, as he did last season, opted to field a reserve team, clearly signaling his lack of interest in the Coppa Italia.
However, Lazio, their opponent, also didn't want to expend much effort in the Coppa Italia. They had reached the Europa League knockout stage and were struggling in ninth place in Serie A at the halfway mark, jeopardizing their chances for European competition.
With both teams fielding reserve squads, the match ended in a 2-1 victory for the home team, Lazio, after ninety minutes of battle.
...
Since Bruno's first match after winning the Ballon d'Or was an away game in a strategically abandoned Coppa Italia match, there was no chance for him to showcase his trophy.
However, the upcoming weekend saw Udinese playing at home.
On January 17, Serie A's 20th round featured a high-profile match at the Stadio Friuli: Udinese versus Juventus.
This was a globally watched game!
At the halfway mark of the Serie A season, Udinese led the table with 51 points, while Juventus had climbed to second place with a nine-match winning streak after a poor start.
Despite their rise to second place, Juventus trailed Udinese by 12 points. If they lost this match, they would fall 15 points behind Udinese with half the season remaining, effectively ending their title hopes!
So, this was a must-win match for Juventus.
Before the match, Udinese arranged a special ceremony for Bruno.
After the teams entered the field, they didn't go straight to their positions. Instead, they lined up at the tunnel entrance. Amid this honor guard, Bruno walked out with the Ballon d'Or trophy.
As he appeared, the packed Stadio Friuli erupted in cheers. His teammates and opponents applauded as well.
This was the honor the new Ballon d'Or winner deserved.
The 40,000 fans at Stadio Friuli chanted, "Ballon d'Or! Ballon d'Or! Ballon d'Or!"
Bruno, amid the cheers, raised the trophy high. This was the highlight of his career.
From now on, call him Mr. Ballon d'Or!
(End of chapter)
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