Ibrahimovic taunts Ronaldo with 'does not need Ballon d'Or to know he is best' barb

Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has declared that he is happy to let Cristiano Ronaldo have the Ballon d'Or because he already knows that he is the best.

According to Metro.co.uk, Ibrahimovic is one of the favourites to scoop the world footballer of the year crown along with Real Madrid's Ronaldo, but the Swede insists he doesn't need official accolades to justify his own lofty status.

The Swede said that the award matters more to some players, adding that it is not something he thought about or something that was important to him.

With reigning holder Lionel Messi suffering the most injury-hit year of his career, the door has opened for the likes of Ibrahimovic and Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery to scoop the prize, although after voting was controversially extended by FIFA, it's likely Ronaldo will now claim the top gong after his exploits in Portugal's World Cup play-off with Sweden, the report said.