In the year 2010, Wesley Sneijder had claimed that he is the best player in the world to date, as he played a crucial role in Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan and helped the club win the treble. After winning the treble with his club, he had also scored five important goals during the Netherland’s significant run to the FIFA World Cup in that year.
He was in the list of top 4 contenders for the Ballon d’Or, finishing behind the famous legendary Barcelona trio Messi, Iniesta, and Xavi. However, Sneijder believes that he was good enough to be compared with the likes of the Argentina star and his rival Portuguese top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo. He had the potential to compete with them consistently; he had maintained a proper routine and didn’t enjoy living his life as much.
“I could have become like Messi or Ronaldo. I simply didn’t feel like it,” said Sneijder to Gianluca di Marzio. “I enjoyed my life, maybe I had a glass [of wine] at dinner. Leo and Cristiano are different, they have made many sacrifices.
“And that’s fine with me, my career, however, was still amazing.”
However, the Dutchman had a wonderful footballing career and the 2009/10 season was the icing on the top of the cake. A player’s dream is fulfilled not only by scoring goals or providing assists but also by the number of trophies he had won in his entire career. Sneijder’s career was blessed with trophies. Jose Mourinho’s team won Serie A, Coppa Italia and the UEFA Champions League in the 2009/10 season and Sneijder witnessed all of them.
After that success with his club, he was the main man behind Netherland’s incredible run to the FIFA World Cup 2010 finals in South Africa. However, Andre Iniesta’s brace helped Spain win against them by a narrow margin of 1-0. That final is considered one of the most controversial finals in World Cup History.
Apart from the treble, he won La Liga and Super League with Ajax, Real Madrid, and Galatasaray. He won the Silver Boot and Bronze Ball at the FIFA World Cup 2010.
Sneijder considers Spanish midfielder Guti as the best teammate. They played at Real Madrid between 2007 and 2009. He said that when he started at Real Madrid, Guti didn’t talk to him for three months as he was benched because of him. When they played together, the duo had an incredible understanding.
Do you think that Sneijder should have won the Ballon d’Or in the year 2010? Let us know.
