Poland captain, Robert Lewandowski, has urged voters for this year's 2021 Ballon d'Or to only choose the best football player in the world and not vote with any form of politics.
The Bayern Munich striker made the plea at a press conference on Tuesday ahead of Poland's World Cup Qualifier against San Marino on October 9.
The 33-year-old was favourite to win the Ballon d' Or in 2020, having scored 55 goals in all competitions for Bayern, but the prize was not handed out because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lewandowski, who remains one of the leading candidates to win the Ballon d' Or this year, said it would be a great pride and a real honour for him to pick the prestigious award.
"It's difficult for me to say how important performances with the national team will be in the context of the Ballon d'Or," Lewandowski said.
"Obviously, any good performance can strengthen my position.
"The question is, are we including 2020 when the Ballon d'Or was cancelled, as well as what is happening in 2021?
"As a team, and individually...all the success we achieved. I don't think I could have done any more, apart from national team success, of course. I have shown that I am a player who is thinking about the Ballon d'Or.
"It would be a great pride, a real honour. The mere fact that I am among the favourites in the era of Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, who have been out of reach for so many years, fills me with real pride. I hope that there will be no politics in all of this and votes will consider only what the player has achieved in the last season. Or, in the last two seasons, depending on how we are interpreting this year's edition."
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