'Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were not better' - Former Bayern Munich star insists 'Ballon d'Or will forever be an injustice' after missing out on prestigious prize

Ribery had a dream run in 2013 as he won six trophies with Bayern Munich, including the Bundesliga, the Champions League and the DFB Pokal. He registered 22 goals and 18 assists in 52 games for club and country and was considered a strong favourite to win the coveted Ballon d'Or that year.

However, once the voting results came out, the Frenchman finished third with 1127 votes, behind Lionel Messi (1205 votes) and the winner Cristiano Ronaldo (1365) votes. The voting process also raised a few eyebrows as for the first time, as the deadline to submit was postponed from November 15 to 29.

Recalling the injustice he faced 12 years back, Ribery told L'Equipe: "With the utmost and maximum humility and respect, Messi and Ronaldo were not better than me in 2013. The 2013 Ballon d'Or will forever remain an injustice. I'm still looking for an explanation. I had the perfect year. I couldn't have done better.

"I'll never understand why the closing date for the vote was extended by more than two weeks. Leo and Cristiano always showed me respect. They knew I was at their table. Being completely humble, in 2013, I had nothing to envy about them."

The 41-year-old left Bayern in 2019 and spent the next two seasons in Serie A at Fiorentina. He then moved to Salernitana for one last season and finally announced his retirement in October 2022 due to a recurring knee injury.