Andre Villas-Boas has favored his countryman Cristiano Ronaldo to take the coveted prize home.

Bar the last year, the Ballon d’Or has been shared by either Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi. The pair have each won the Golden ball five times since Ronaldo’s first win back in 2008.

The 2019 Ballon d’Or will be a tiebreaker for the duo’s personal competition. Despite reports suggesting that the Barcelona number-10 is only a ceremony away from landing his sixth, Andre Villas-Boas has backed CR7 to win the Ballon d’Or.

“It’s difficult… I am Portuguese so of course I support Ronaldo more,” he said as reported by Goal.

“Cristiano took a risk by leaving the best team in the world, with more titles in the world. That kind of risk should be appreciated. Playing in Italy and scoring goals is difficult.

“Messi is still in his club, Barcelona, which is a big club. He is able to make the difference.

“But I am more for Cristiano because I’m Portuguese. Both of them are exceptional, it’s difficult to choose. It [Ballon d’Or] will become a competition between them.

“Having these two players in the same generation and watching them is absolutely incredible. They are extraterrestrials,” Andre Villa-Boas insisted.