Coentrao feels his fellow Portuguese teammate stood head and shoulders above the rest of the world in 2014, and says Ronaldo deserves the award even ahead of the World Cup-winning Germany players.
Ronaldo, a two-time FIFA Ballon d'Or winner, enjoyed a stellar season with his club side last season, helping them to their 10th UEFA Champions League title, and has continued his fine form which led him to be crowned 2013 World Player of the Year.
“Anyone can see it would be an utter disgrace if Cristiano didn’t receive the Ballon d’Or, which is an individual award, not for a team," Coentrao told Portuguese newspaper A Bola.
"There has never been a bigger difference between the best in the world and the number two.
"His Champions League record is an incredible record and people also need to take into account the mountain of goals he’s scored this season already. He keeps on putting in amazing performances without ever tiring," he added.
Cristiano Ronaldo, 29, has so far amassed 55 goals in the current 2014 calendar year for club and country, more than any other player in Europe's top five leagues, with Messi trailing him by five goals.
Coentrao feels his club and country mate has done more than enough in 2014 to show that he is worthy of the award for a second consecutive year, and that only the 2015 award is now up for debate.
"As our coach said recently, let’s talk about next year’s Ballon d’Or, because there’s no point talking about this year’s now; it can only go to Cristiano. In 2014, it’s not hard to recognise that Cristiano was clearly the best in the world," concluded the 26-year-old.