Ronaldinho wins world player award

Ronaldinho was named FIFA’s world player of the year for the second successive season tonight as Frank Lampard had to settle for second place.

Barcelona’s brilliant Brazilian, who was also named European footballer of the year last month, becomes only the third player to win the world award twice.

England midfielder Lampard may be viewed by his Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho as the best player in the world but he came second in the voting by national team coaches and captains while Ronaldinho’s team-mate Samuel Eto’o finished third.

Ronaldinho first came to international attention in the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, when Lampard did not even make the England squad.

The Chelsea midfielder said he had used that setback as a spur to his career, and to finish second was recognition of the transformation in his fortunes.

Lampard said: “Missing out on the last World Cup was the biggest disappointment of my career but I did not react in a negative way but a positive way.

“I work harder on my game, to play with even more confidence and I have been playing in a team that has moved on and matched my progress.”

Ronaldinho, 25, finished the overwhelming winner with 956 points compared to 306 for Lampard and 190 for Eto’o.

He joins the ranks of Real Madrid players Zinedine Zidane (1998 and 2003) and Ronaldo (1996, 1997 and 2002) as those who have won the FIFA award more than once.

He also won the international players’ union FIFPro’s first world player award in September.

The woman player of the year went to Germany’s Birgit Prinz, who beat Marta of Brazil and America's Shannon Boxx in the voting.