WORKING HARDER

Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery has said that he was much harder than the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, who will be his rivals for the FIFA Ballon d’Or award.

The Barcelona superstar, Lionel Messi is the current holder of this award after having won it four times in succession. Ribery, though, is a favourite to win the award this time around after having helped his team win all the major trophies last season including the Champions League. Ribery scored in the 3-1 win over Manchester City in the group stages of the competition.

After the encounter, he said that he is working harder than the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi. Over the last few years, Messi has not allowed anyone come close award. However, this time around there is a chance of Ribery winning the award. Apart from getting the league title, Messi has not won any major trophies. This is in sharp contrast to Ribery, who has also done well with the French national team. The 30-year-old Frenchman has said that he is enjoying himself more than ever. He also appears to have a great relationship with Guardiola, who took over the summer.

Ribery and Arjen Robben have been ever present in the Bayern Munich team this season.

"Compared to them, I work much harder. I do a lot more defending than Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and provide more assists. It would be fantastic to actually win the Fifa Ballon d'Or when you have a shot at winning it. I have even more confidence in myself than before and that shows on the pitch. I am on top of my game and score a lot of goals. I am really enjoying myself on the pitch," said the Bayern Munich winger. The German club are once again favourites to win the Champions league this season.