After the Champions League dismantling of Villarreal, Jurgen Klopp got a little exasperated earlier this week when asked about the chances of Sadio Mane winning the Ballon D’Or.
Understandably so. Even though Klopp answered the question as fully as he could, a semi-final of European club football’s blue riband competition was occupying most of his thoughts. But individual awards do interest people, especially those who receive them.
The Ballon D’or voting is some way down the line but, on Friday morning, the Football Writers’ Association will name its 75th Footballer of the Year, the first having been Stanley Matthews in 1948.
Voting closed at midnight on Wednesday, not long after Liverpool ’s latest win was sealed by a Mane goal,, which was appropriate, as he must also be a strong contender for this accolade. It is a tough one this season. On these pages, I have previously advocated the case for Trent Alexander-Arnold and for Mane. But there are a handful of very worthy candidates. At Manchester City, Kevin de Bruyne is taking his midfield skill-set to new levels, Joao Cancelo has been wonderful, Riyad Mahrez is vastly under-rated.
Elsewhere, Declan Rice has shone for West Ham United, Son Heung-min has been smashing for Spurs, Bukayo Saka superb for Arsenal and Fred the Red has been a fine mascot at Manchester United. Coming up on the rails should be Christian Eriksen for his remarkable comeback and the impact the Dane and his bionic heart has had on Brentford. There would be several worthy winners and my vote has been promised to a few over the past weeks.
But, in the end, when it came to putting an X in the box, it had to go to the man with the X-factor, it had to go to the man who can produce the most magical moments, it had to go to Mohamed Salah. And let’s not even dwell on statistics, let’s not dwell on the 22 Premier League goals, 13 Premier League assists and eight Champions League goals. Because they do not tell half the Salah story. He might have had a lull after the disappointment of the Africa Cup of Nations but this is a player who, in one way or another, is a threat every time he gets the ball.
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He scares teams and if he is not the final executor, he is the distraction. And Salah gets the ball a lot because he plays an awful lot. When I checked out his appearance record for an article at the weekend, I was a little shocked. Because according to the highly respected website transfermarkt.co.uk, Salah has only been unfit for selection on three occasions in his time at Liverpool - and one of those was when he had tested positive for Covid.
He is as robust as he is brilliant. Again, his figures over five years at Anfield are astonishing but the ability to produce jaw-dropping, game-changing moments is unquantifiable. If he is voted Footballer of the Year for the second time, he will be in elite company. Thierry Henry collected it three times and, then, there are seven players who have won it twice. Matthews, Tom Finney, Danny Blanchflower, Kenny Dalglish, John Barnes, Gary Lineker and Cristiano Ronaldo. And that is the company Mohamed Salah belongs in.
Hamilton staying classy
Nico Rosberg, who pipped Lewis Hamilton to the 2016 Formula One drivers’ championship but then quit, has had a bit of a pop Jacques Villeneuve, who won a solitary title before jacking it in, twisted the knife a little.
Ralf Schumacher, winless in 180 Grand Prix starts before retiring at the age of 32, suggested Lewis Hamilton should admit George Russell “is better right now.” And then there is 79-year-old Helmut Marko, who was pointless in a nine-race Formula One stint in the early Seventies, and who is a senior figure at Red Bull Racing. After seeing Max Verstappen lap Hamilton at Imola, good old Helmut joked that the seven-times world champion should have retired at the end of last season.
A cheap shot. But Hamilton might indeed have retired had he won a deserved eighth title and not been robbed of it by the scandalous decision of a race director who had Red Bull’s team principal in his ear. Yes, Hamilton has had a torrid first four races of the 2022 season but at least he is staying classy … unlike a good few you could mention.
Meanwhile, the jibe about Emma Raducanu having had as many coaching deals as sponsorship deals is cheap. It is, surely, best to be decisive as soon as you realise a partnership is not working. But sometimes it is best not to leave it to your PR people to explain why.
“I want to thank Torben for his coaching, his professionalism and dedication over the last half a year. He has a huge heart and I have enjoyed our strong chemistry during the time together. I feel the best direction for my development is to transition to a new training model …” Seriously, how many teenagers speak like that? Sometimes, saying nothing is more sincere than saying something.
