This archive report was first published on 3 December 2019.
On the same night that Lionel Messi won the Ballon d'Or for a record sixth time, Cristiano Ronaldo was honoured with the best forward and MVP awards at the Serie A Gala del Calcio in Milan.
However, Ronaldo's appearance at the ceremony was brief and somewhat unusual, as he was reportedly seen staying in his car until he was announced as the winner of the MVP award.
According to Tancredi Palmeri, a BeIN sports correspondent and former Gazzetta dello Sport journalist, Ronaldo's bodyguards pointed torches at cameras in an apparent bid to stop them getting shots of the Portuguese ace.
Palmeri tweeted: "UNBELIEVABLE! Cristiano Ronaldo waited in his car for the moment in which he had to be awarded MVP Serie A award! Then when the time came, he finally get out to enter the theatre, while his bodyguards pointed torchlights to cameras!"
Twitter users found the revelation hilarious, with one suggesting Ronaldo had been "crying in his car" after losing out to Messi in the Ballon d'Or vote.
