After claiming that the pool of potential Ballon d’Or winners consisted solely of himself and Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal has now accepted that Lionel Messi’s bid for a record-extending ninth triumph was not “nonsense.”
During the most open Ballon d’Or race in decades, some of the leading contenders have tried to sway the 100 journalists voting on the award by openly campaigning. Harry Kane has braved several interviews while Kylian Mbappé appears to be more internationally quoted than Donald Trump. Yamal has embarked upon his media onslaught. Like any other 19-year-old, he has come to regret some of his statements.
Last week, the Barcelona star declared that it was a two-horse race. “Mbappé and I are the two best in the world. For me, it’s very clear, and everyone who watches the games knows it.”
That stance belittled the claims put forward by the likes of Yamal’s compatriot and World Cup winning captain Rodri, the best player for Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and a certain Lionel Messi. In a subsequent interview with L’Équipe, Yamal has softened his stance, particularly when it comes to the legendary eight-time winner of the award.
“They’re all incredible players,” Yamal said of the 29 other nominees. “It doesn’t surprise me that these guys are in the running—they all have their own case to make. Messi is mentioned because he had a great World Cup, for example, and others have different arguments.
“We have to respect everyone’s opinion. If someone says, ‘Messi deserves it’ or ‘Rodri deserves it,’ that’s totally respectable—they’re not talking nonsense, right?”
Could Lionel Messi Win a Ninth Ballon d’Or?
There are three criteria under consideration for this year’s Ballon d’Or:
- Individual performances, decisive and impressive character
- Collective performances and titles won
- Class and fair play.
One of the unwritten rules to also consider is the World Cup factor. In any year with the most meaningful tournament the sport has to offer, acts on that grand stage are multipled exponentially.
Messi emphatically ticks the first box with a staggering sequence of individual displays for Argentina this summer. Inspired by his ailing father watching on from afar and propelled by months of preparation in the humid conditions of Miami, the ageless 39-year-old defied the clock to score eight goals and set up another four as Argentina battled its way to the final. While some of his teammates failed to meet the third criterion, Messi didn’t get dragged into the unseemly scenes at fulltime of the final.
The Ballon d’Or voters can be a romantic bunch, as evidenced by Messi’s triumph in 2023. Erling Haaland ravaged all before him for a Manchester City side which won the European treble, but it was Messi’s role in Argentina’s World Cup victory that landed him the golden gong. Despite not winning the trophy this time around, the international captain was arguably even better in the States than he had been at Qatar.
