"I didn't understand why they didn't give me the Ballon d'Or in 2020"

Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski insisted he does not understand why he was not given the Ballon d'Or in 2020 when the award was suspended due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Polish striker, who spoke to former England player Rio Ferdinand on his podcast, broke the Bundesliga goalscoring record in the 2020-21 season and 2020 and 2021 were his best years as a professional, but ‘France Football’ decided to suspend the 2020 edition and give the award to Leo Messi in 2021.

"At the time I didn't understand why. All the leagues were being played, the Champions League was being played, and for me it was like... why? why? I know football works sometimes like politics, because if you have football, you have business. And if you have business, you have politics," the Pole said.

Asked by Ferdinand if he would accept the award if the French magazine presented it to him now, four years later, Lewandowski said "of course."