Sergio Ramos Claims Andres Iniesta Would Have Won 2 Ballons d'Or Had His Name Been 'Andresinho'

Real Madrid skipper Sergio Ramos has showered praise on Barcelona legend Andrés Iniesta in an unorthodox style by claiming the midfielder would have won two Ballons d'Or had his name been 'Andresinho'. 

The pair may be club rivals but they have been national compatriots with Spain for over a decade, and Ramos was quick to offer his tribute to the 33-year-old who is expected to announce his departure from Camp Nou imminently. 

David Ramos/GettyImages

Iniesta has dominated La Liga for over 16-years which has seen him collect a plethora of club and individual honours along the way, all but the prestigious Ballon d'Or. But Ramos has claimed that had he been Brazilian, he would have had two to his name long ago. 

Following Real Madrid's Champions League semi-final triumph over Bayern Munich, Ramos told reporters, via Sport: "If Andres was called Andresinho, he would have two Ballons d'Or.

"We value little about home and too much of the outside: We are all are guilty, the Spanish press does not value what we do," he added. 

Iniesta did finish in the top three on two occasions, in 2010 and 2012, where his World Cup winning goal for Spain in South Africa looked to have etched his name on footballs greatest individual prize, only for teammate Lionel Messi to pip him to the post. 

The midfielder is expected to call time on his illustrious career with Barcelona at the end of the season before making the move to China with Chongqing Lifan. 

Although Iniesta failed to break the Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo stranglehold on the Ballon d'Or, the Spaniard will finish his career in Spain with eight La Liga titles, four Champions League winners' medals and six Copa del Rey titles.