2009 Ballon d�Or winner Lionel Messi collected his award in France this morning, and the gracious star was appreciative of the efforts of his team-mates that allowed him to be recognised for the honour.
The Argentine amassed 473 points to receive more than double the support of second placed Cristiano Ronaldo, and also well clear of his club colleague Xavi, who finished third.
During the ceremony, which was broadcast on French television, the 22-year old took the opportunity to ensure the Barcelona squad were thanked for their efforts.
He said, �I dedicate the Golden Ball to my colleagues, and I share this trophy with them. I want to thank my family, my friends, and my brothers who are always there for me.�
Messi also set his sights on winning the award again in 2010, and in doing so help Barcelona to even greater success than their Triplete-winning season of 2008/09.
He continued, �Hopefully I can win again, it would be great to win some more. But that depends on how good we are with Barcelona and how Argentina perform at the World Cup.�
�The Flea� also offered his opinion on Thierry Henry�s controversial handball that allowed France to progress to the World Cup in South Africa at Ireland�s expense.
�I do not know what I would have done instead,� he commented, before adding, �I think [Thierry] did the right thing, he apologized and we cannot put all of the blame on him.�
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