Adrien Rabiot has insisted Lionel Messi doesn’t deserve to win the Ballon d’Or award and has instead named Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe as his favorites.
The Ballon d’Or race will be discussed over the next few weeks as the award will be given soon.
After winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Lionel Messi would be the leading candidate for the honor.
The 36-year-old Inter Miami superstar is deemed by many as the favorite to win his record eighth Ballon d’Or on 30 October.
Rabiot spoke with RMC Sport and the French media outlet and asked the midfielder who should lift the award; he doesn’t have the Argentine as the favorite.
For the Frenchman, it’s a battle that should be between Manchester City’s Erling Haaland and Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappé.
“Ballon d’Or? I hear a lot that it’s Messi who is going to get it,” Rabiot said.
“But on a sporting level, it will be played between Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland. Saying one of them would be complicated, it depends on what you base it on. Not everyone ever agrees, but I think it will be between these two.”
Haaland was a revelation in his debut season at Manchester City, playing a key role as Pep Guardiola’s men won the continental treble. He finished top scorer in the Premier League with 36 goals in 35 league games, and in the UEFA Champions League with 12 in 11.
Meanwhile, Mbappe enjoyed an excellent past year at both club and international level for PSG and France. He bagged 41 goals and 10 assists in 43 games across competitions, winning his sixth Ligue 1 title. The French superstar won the Golden Boot at the 2022 FIFA World Cup with eight goals in seven games.
It will be interesting to see France Football’s criteria when handing out the Ballon d’Or this year.
Nonetheless, the World Cup trophy from Messi might be too much to overlook as he also had good numbers during the 2022-23 Ligue 1 season. Will that be enough for the 36-year-old to claim the award, or will his decision to leave for Inter Miami hurt him?
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