There isn’t any “I” in “team”, but there’s in “best player in the world”, and that is strictly what the Ballon d'Or is for.
Crowning the most effective footballer on the earth over the past yr may look like a pointless exercise given the multitude of nuances, but that is strictly what France Football magazine has been doing since 1956 and on Wednesday evening the nominees for the 2024 men's award were announced.
The big names were all there (or so you may think, given the 30 players on the shortlist) and might be voted on by a gaggle of pesky journalists before the winner is announced on October twenty eighth.
So now that we all know the identities of the players who could be called the game's leading stars – and for the primary time since 2003, it’ll not be Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo – we are able to discuss who was lucky to be there, who was unlucky to not be there, and who is taken into account a sure winner.
Here 4 authors criticize the nominations for the Ballon d'Or this yr.
Who was probably the most surprising latest addition?
Ademola Lookman had an evening to recollect when he scored a hat-trick within the Europa League final in May. He also helped Nigeria to the Africa Cup of Nations final this season, scoring three goals.
Lookman hasn't wowed the world all season, nonetheless, playing just 55 percent of Atalanta's league minutes as he's been a relentless out and in of Gian Piero Gasperini's side. He's actually had a powerful season, but perhaps it's a surprise to see him among the many top 30 players of the yr.
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Ademola Lookman on his Europa League heroics with Atalanta and scoring goals “for the streets”
Vitinha. Undoubtedly a extremely good player, but what have I missed? Compared to the opposite midfielders on the shortlist and their performances, it's difficult to make an argument for him – especially after Portugal's disappointing Euro 2024 campaign.
Dani Olmo can be lucky. He deserves to be considered amongst the most effective players on the earth and was exceptional in Germany over the summer, but he rarely showed that form within the Bundesliga or Champions League in 2023/24. In fact, he only began 19 games in total in those competitions.
Dani Olmo moved from RB Leipzig to Barcelona this summer (Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
Dani Olmo had an excellent Euro and while that's necessary, the award is supposed to reflect the entire of last season. In this case, someone like Riccardo Calafiori would have deserved it more as he excelled for Bologna. As a Wolves fan, I'm still amazed at how high Vitinha has risen. Also, the award is supposed to reflect good behaviour and fair play, so Emi Martinez should consider herself lucky (no kidding, Aston Villa fans, I'm only kidding).
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Vitinha and his strange development from Wolves substitute to Portuguese midfield maestro
Honestly, Emiliano Martinez. I feel his yr was 2022 with the World Cup, but I don't think his season is price a nomination for the Ballon d'Or. He won the Copa America and I see some legitimacy in that, but Aston Villa “only” qualified for the Champions League despite an excellent season. I understand what which means for the club, but I don't know if he deserves a nomination.
Which player was most unhappy to not be there?
If we're judging solely by his attacking numbers, Serhou Guirassy may be upset to not have made the list. With 28 goals (plus three assists), only six players in Europe's top five leagues were involved in additional goals than Guirassy last season – and five of them made the list (poor Ollie Watkins).
Guirassy's rate of 1.1 goals per 90 minutes last season was unmatched by another player in Europe, earning him a move to Borussia Dortmund but unfortunately not enough to secure him a spot on this shortlist.
Jamal Musiala was probably probably the most talented player not included within the list, but what about Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper and captain Lukas Hradecky? Leverkusen are well represented with Florian Wirtz, Alex Grimaldo and Granit Xhaka and all three deserve their place, but Hradecky has been subtly fundamental to what Xabi Alonso's side have achieved, reaching a particularly high level that many wouldn’t have previously believed him able to.
After all, he was only one game away from leading a team to an undefeated domestic and continental treble.
If we have a look at the shape of the entire yr, it makes little sense that Mats Hummels is there and Virgil van Dijk will not be. Jamal Musiala was actually a top 30 player last season. And Julian Alvarez also deserves praise, having scored 19 goals and provided 13 assists for his club, in addition to winning the Premier League and the Copa America.
What is especially disappointing is that – especially in an AFCON yr – there is just one African player on the list and even the inclusion of Ademola Lookman could have more to do with Atalanta than Nigeria.
If William Troost-Ekong had been named the most effective player on the Euros relatively than the Africa Cup of Nations, he would have been included, as would James Rodriguez on the Copa America, but this award stays a Eurocentric one, reserved almost exclusively for players from the continent. It could be very strange that Lionel Messi will not be included.
Call me old-fashioned or romantic, but Leo Messi. Yes, I do know he doesn't play in one among the massive leagues, but I find it strange to win an award that he would have deserved yearly before without seeing it, after… 18 years? I do know he was injured for months and it wasn't his best season, but he also won the Copa America with Argentina, like Martinez.
Lionel Messi has won eight Ballons d'Or – a ninth is not going to follow this yr (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
Who will finish in the highest three?
Rodri, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior – in that order.
Vinicius Jr., Rodri, Erling Haaland.
Vinicius Junior has not yet made it into the highest three within the Ballon d'Or voting… yet (Thomas Coex/AFP via Getty Images)
It's hard to assume Rodri or Vinicius Jr. not being at the highest. As for the third player, based on previous voting habits, it’ll probably be between Dani Carvajal, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe and maybe Lautaro Martinez. Let's say Carvajal.
I could undoubtedly imagine Rodri and Vinicius Jr. in the highest three, and the third might be Kylian Mbappe.
And I do know that many will disagree and say that this could be very hasty because he has not played a full season at Barcelona, but Lamine Yamal, despite his youth and the undeniable fact that it’s his first full season within the elite, also deserves a spot because at 17 he played a crucial role within the Spanish European champions of 2024 and at a club as big as Barca. His level was exceptional. Maybe I’m saying this too early, but I’ll just drop this suggestion here and go.
Who do you’re thinking that will win – and who should win?
All roads result in Rodri. He has been his club's and country's most consistent, dominant and influential player over the past 12 months. He has left his mark on every thing his team does well – with and without the ball – and his performances are a hit within the Premier League and on the European Championships.
It's time for more midfielders to win this individual trophy. No one deserves it more.
Manchester City’s Rodri – a preferred alternative (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Vinicius Jr. will probably win, but Rodri probably should. It still looks like attacking players are over-privileged, as is success and performance within the Champions League. It's quite interesting that despite every thing Manchester City have achieved in his time on the club, Rodri has never even finished in the highest three. This is comprehensible on one hand because it might probably be difficult to accurately assess his contribution, but it’s also clearly an oversight.
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Rodri.
Rodri. Although there are players like Dani Carvajal who’ve won all the foremost trophies just like the Champions League, La Liga and the European Championship, I feel that Rodri – although he hasn't won the Champions League – deserves it for what he brings to Manchester City, probably the greatest teams in Europe.
His position is undervalued in the person awards, but I feel he must be the one to win and I feel he’ll.
The Ballon d'Or shortlist: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Phil Foden (Man City), Ruben Dias (Man City), Federico Valverde (Real Madrid), Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa), Erling Haaland (Man City), Nicolas Williams (Athletic Bilbao), Granit Xhaka (Bayer Leverkusen), Artem Dovbyk (Roma), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid), Martin Odegaard (Arsenal), Dani Olmo (Barcelona), Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen), Mats Hummels (Roma) , Rodri (Man City), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Vitinha (PSG), Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid), William Lintasa (Arsenal), Lamine Yamal (Barcelona), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter Milan), Antonio Rüdiger (Real Madrid), Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan), Ademola Lookman (Atalanta), Alex Grimaldo (Bayer Leverkusen)
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