John Barnes believes that Virgil van Dijk should have won this year's Ballon d'Or ahead of the "greatest player in the world" Lionel Messi.
The Barcelona superstar picked up the accolade for a record-breaking sixth time on December 2 , moving one ahead of Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo's tally.
Messi scored 54 times for club and country last season, helping the Blaugrana retain their Liga title in the process, but he suffered more disappointment in the Champions League.
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Liverpool knocked Barca out of the competition at the semi-final stage with a stunning 4-0 second-leg win at Anfield, before beating Tottenham in an all-English final on June 1.