I THINK that Lionel Messi must have a relative on the FIFA board to have been awarded with the golden ball for the best player at the 2014 World Cup.

Embarrassingly, he was given the trophy after wasting a clear second-half opportunity to score against Germany and win the final for Argentina.

A more appropriate award would have been for the under achiever of the tournament when you consider the performances of the likes of Arjen Robben , Andre Schurrle, Maxi Rodriguez and Neymar.

Fellow Argentinian Diego Maradona claimed his countryman only received the award because he is an official ambassador for adidas, a Fifa partner.

Maradona, a former winner, picked Colombia’s James Rodriguez as his man of the tournament. It seems that the selectors were Mess- merised by his reputation.

T Seale, Middlesbrough.