January 16 | Switzerland – Lakeside Lodge
Snow fell in slow spirals outside the wide glass windows, settling along the edge of Lake Zürich.
Inside, the lodge was all soft lighting and the smell of cinnamon from the tea Julia had insisted on making the moment they'd arrived. A low fire crackled in the stone hearth. Biscuit was curled up on a cream rug like she'd personally picked the spot for maximum warmth.
Barbara sat cross-legged on the couch beside Anita, fussing with the sleeves of a dress bag. "Alright, you've got to promise me you'll wear the shoes with this. Chanel sent them specifically to match the dress. If you go rogue, my reputation's ruined."
Anita laughed, shaking her head. "Köszönöm, Babi… tényleg. Ez gyönyörű." (Thank you, Babi… really. It's beautiful.)
"She says thank you," Barbara translated for the room, glancing at Tristan with a small smile.
István leaned forward from the armchair, his thick sweater making him look even broader. "We've never been to something like this. It's… a little nerve-wracking."
Ágnes nodded beside him. "All those cameras. All those famous people."
Julia, sitting with a blanket over her lap, waved it off with practiced ease. "You'll be fine. Trust me, you'll blink and it's over. This is our second time now, remember? Last year, Tristan was barely nineteen, ranked ninth, and he survived."
Ling chuckled quietly from his place near the window, nursing his tea.
Tristan, leaning back in a deep leather chair, smiled at that memory. "Yeah, I think the only one nervous was me. You lot looked like you were at a garden party."
Barbara glanced at him. "You're not nervous now?"
He tilted his head, considering. "Not yet. Maybe when I'm actually standing in the room with Messi and Ronaldo again."
Looking back, he remembered the nerves — standing in a room with legends. But this time was different. He wasn't a failure anymore. He'd earned his place here.
Anita smirked. "És Tristan Armani öltönyben lesz." (And Tristan will be in an Armani suit.)
Julia picked up on the tone even before Barbara translated. "Oh, he'll look fine. All three of you will — the men always have it easy. One suit, good shoes, you're done."
István raised an eyebrow, half a smile on his face. "Easy for you to say."
Tristan's phone buzzed on the armrest. He picked it up, thumb swiping across the screen, and laughed.
"Vardy says they're going to be late tomorrow. He's stuck in Lyon with Mahrez and Kanté. Something about a missed connection."
Barbara raised her brows. "So much for the team photo."
"They'll make it," Tristan said, tucking his phone away. "All three of them are in the top 30. No way they miss this."
Julia smiled knowingly. "Then it sounds like tomorrow's going to be quite the Leicester reunion."
.
Night had settled deep over Lake Zürich, the glassy water mirroring the dark sky so perfectly it was hard to see where one ended and the other began. Snowflakes tumbled in slow spirals past the lodge's wide windows, dusting the frozen shoreline.
Barbara clicked off the lamp, plunging the room into the kind of quiet you only got in the mountains. Beyond the glass, snow kept drifting down in lazy spirals, the dim glow from the lodge balcony light catching in each flake.
"Big day tomorrow," she murmured, tucking herself in beside him. Biscuit had claimed the warm dip between their feet.
Tristan lay on his back, staring up at the dark ceiling. "Yeah."
Barbara shifted closer, one hand resting on his chest. "You'll smash it. Now sleep."
"Mm." He closed his eyes, but his mind refused to slow down. It wasn't nerves exactly — more like the restless hum before a kickoff. Last year he'd gone to bed wide-eyed with awe. This year… it was different. More weight. More eyes on him.
After a few minutes, Barbara's breathing evened out. Tristan reached over, careful not to jostle her, and slid his phone from the nightstand. The soft glow lit the room in pale blue.
A few aimless scrolls through Instagram, a glance at Twitter. Travel shots of players arriving in Switzerland, pundits debating Messi vs Ronaldo vs Him. It's a bit wild to him in the argument.
Then he opened Reddit.
The /r/soccer front page was a mess of Ballon d'Or threads — predictions, fan edits, people arguing in bad faith. He scrolled past most of it until a post title caught his eye:
Final Ballon d'Or 2015 Top 10 Prediction
He hesitated, thumb hovering, before tapping it open. He had nothing better to do besides of course sleep.
Alright, before the pitchforks come out — this isn't my personal list. This is based on what's being reported by journalists, federation guys, and PR staff already in Zürich for the ceremony. Same sources nailed the 2014 list a day early.
Here's how they say it's going to go down:
Lionel Messi (Barcelona/Argentina)Treble winner (La Liga, Copa del Rey, Champions League).
69 goals, 34 assists in 64 games (club + country).
Ran the UCL knockout stages like a conductor — Bayern fans still have nightmares.
Man of the Match in two finals.
Only injury in early 15/16 stopped him from putting even more daylight between him and the rest.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/Portugal)No trophies, but 63 goals, 20 assists in 57 games.
Golden Boot winner in La Liga, hat-tricks for fun.
Coasts on legacy, sure, but he's still a monster.
Tristan Hale (Leicester City/England)57 games, 43 goals, 41 assists in calendar year.
PFA Player of the Year, FWA Footballer of the Year, Premier League Player of the Season.
Broke multiple PL assist and G/A records at 20 years old.
Youngest in history to make the podium in a top 5 league era.
No trophies — and that's literally the only thing keeping him from pushing Ronaldo for #2. Either way I can still see Tristan being number 2 just because of the sheer hype behind him
Neymar (Barcelona/Brazil)53 goals, 27 assists in 62 games.
Carried Brazil on his back after Copa América humiliation.
Crucial to Barca's treble, but still in Messi's shadow. He will never win the Ballon d'Or in Messi's shadow. He needs his own team. Maybe PSG or something. Just throwing it out there
Luis Suárez (Barcelona/Uruguay)Golden Shoe winner. 44 goals for Barca.
Scored or assisted in 7 of last 10 UCL knockout games. If he existed in a world where the top 3 monsters aren't a thing, he have a few Ballon d'Ors for sure.
Robert Lewandowski (Bayern/Poland)Bundesliga + DFB-Pokal winner.
That 5 goals in 9 minutes is already in football folklore.
Manuel Neuer (Bayern/Germany)Best keeper in the world.
29 clean sheets in all competitions.
Eden Hazard (Chelsea/Belgium)Premier League + League Cup winner.
Alexis Sánchez (Arsenal/Chile)FA Cup + Copa América champion.
Scored in both finals.
Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona/Spain)Barca's heartbeat in midfield.
Masterclass in UCL final.
TL;DR: Messi's locked for #1. Ronaldo's numbers + PR keep him #2. Tristan might be the first player since Kaka to break the Messi/Ronaldo podium without trophies. Just insane to think about the leap from 9th place to either 2nd or third just the very next year at twenty years old.
…(End of Post)
Top Comments:
u/Tax_The_Rich ↑ 3.1k
3rd at TWENTY YEARS OLD with no trophies. I don't care what anyone says Tristan is the fucking GOAT.
↳ u/BeerIsNice ↑ 1.1k
If he was at Barca or Madrid, he'd have #1 locked.
↳ u/Lucas ↑ 890
Nah, not with Messi's treble. But yeah, he'd be #2 at least.
u/GoonerPhilosophy ↑ 2.7k
Hate to admit it as an Arsenal fan, but Tristan's numbers are video game stuff.
43G / 41A with Leicester. In the Premier League.
↳ u/Rat_Hair/Shanks ↑ 740
He's breaking every PL assist record before he's 21.
↳ u/Fuck|Itachi
[GIF LINK] (Tristan dragback vs Spurs) – He cooked THREE defenders here.
Man's got sauce. The amount of edits Tristan has for his dribbling, goals and assists is fucking insane. Have you guys seen some of the videos with his free kicks. I think MagicalMessi is behind some of them either way, it's crazy to see the level of fame Tristan reached in like 3 years
↳ u/SaltyUnitedFan ↑ 480
Sauce? My club got blended.
u/Fuck|Tristan900 ↑ 2.2k
No trophies = no Ballon d'Or. End of. Stats merchants don't win.
↳ u/StatPatrol ↑ 1.6k
"Stats merchant" — mate, those stats are the reason Leicester finished 6th instead of 16th. Also both Ronaldo and Messi won some of their Ballon d'Or just based on their stats, lmao.
↳ u/KDB4Life ↑ 900
Without him, Leicester are mid-table. With him, they're in Europe. That's value.
↳ u/VanPersieWasRight ↑ 610
Can confirm — United spent £150m and didn't even get close to his numbers.
u/Sin_12 ↑ 1.8k
People forget he's the youngest in history to get top 3. More impressive than Ronaldo making #2 again.
↳ u/HistorianOfTheGame ↑ 1.1k
Kaka was 25 when he won. Owen was 22 when he won. Hale's 20 and doing this? Yeah, generational.
u/ElMagico10 ↑ 1.5k
When Leicester win the league, FA Cup, League Cup and the Europa League It's over. Tristan takes it.
↳ u/BallBoyBanter ↑ 620
Bookmarking this. I want to see if you're right which you probably are. I don't see Ronaldo winning the Euros with Portugal so Tristan has the highest chance than anyone else. Kinda feel bad for Neymar, lmao.
↳ u/Anti22Brigade ↑ 500
Not happening. Defenders will figure him out, just like they did Hazard.
↳ u/LeicesterLad88 ↑ 870
Lmao, Hazard never hit Tristan's peak numbers once in his career. And mind you this is a twenty year old
u/ThatOneGuy1994 ↑ 1.2k
All this hype for a one-season wonder. Let's see him do it for 5 years before the coronation.
↳ u/FoxesTilIDie ↑ 1.4k
He already did it last season too. He's literally improving year to year.
↳ u/Thomas ↑ 1.1k
Last season he had 75 G/A and in the current season he's on pace to beat that, lol. But sure, "one-season wonder."
↳ u/RayleighTheGOAt ↑ 800
For comparison — Lampard's best G/A season? 40. At his peak. Tristan's done double that in one year. And from everything we seen him having a 30/30 season will be a downgrade lol. Fuck outta here with the bullshit. After this season, Tristan will be the Premier League's greatest player of all time. And will be in the top twenty greatest player of all time rankings by sheer stats alone.
u/BarbaraFan ↑ 900
Imagine being 20 and walking into that room tomorrow knowing you're top 3 in the world. Not bad for a kid from Leicester.
↳ u/ProperFootballMan ↑ 520
And he'll probably act like it's another day at the office, lol. Looking on Tristan's rise, it does feel like it was destined with all the videos of a kid him saying he was going to bring trophies to Leciester.
↳ u/Marco ↑ 480
[GIF LINK] (Hale's free kick vs Sunderland) – Yeah, "another day at the office."
Tristan scrolled, thumb idly flicking through the mess of praise, sarcasm, and arguments.
Some of it made him laugh — the "GOAT at twenty" comment, the kid confidently bookmarking a Leicester quadruple prediction. Or the guy saying Neymar going to PSG. He would pay money to see the reaction in a few years.
Some of it made him shake his head — stats merchant, one-season wonder. There would always be fans who'd hate him no matter what he did. People who'd never see the good, never care about the work he's doing around the world, just that he'd embarrassed their club or outshone their favorite player.
The GIF of his Spurs dragback looped endlessly, each frame dragging out Vertonghen's stumble like it was choreographed humiliation.
The Sunderland free kick had already gone semi-viral — one thread with dramatic orchestral music swelling in time with the strike, another cutting to an explosion when the ball hit the net.
A line from one of the top comments lingered longer than he'd admit:
"Imagine being 20 and walking into that room tomorrow knowing you're top 3 in the world."
He read it twice, the glow of the screen catching in his eyes. Twenty. He wasn't, not really — he'd died at twenty-four. Did that make him forty-four now? He shut that thought down before it spiraled and glanced at Barbara beside him, pressing a light kiss to her hair.
For a while, he just lay there staring at the ceiling, the darkness filling with flashes from last year's ceremony, the stage lights, the cameras, the weight of standing in that room alone. At least this time, he wouldn't be the only one from Leicester.
He set the phone back on the nightstand, rolled onto his side, and pulled the covers up.
Sleep didn't come quickly, but when it did, it carried him into a room full of legends.
.
Please remember all the stats are bigger than real life by like 6 goals for both Messi and Ronaldo. I just forget the increase lol but it was no bigger than 10.