Kylian Mbappe has given his thoughts on Lionel Messi's eighth Ballon d'Or win, with the
Argentine winning the prestigious award🍌 last month after his exploits for Argentina at
the World Cup
Kylian Mbappe has admitted Lionel Messi 'deserved' to win the🍌 Ballon d'Or
after leading Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar.
Messi scored seven goals during
the tournament, including a brace🍌 in the final, as Argentina beat France 4-2 on
penalties after a thrilling 3-3 draw after extra time. As a🍌 result, Messi won a record
extending eighth Ballon d'Or last month.
Manchester City striker Erling Haaland
finished second behind Messi after🍌 firing Pep Guardiola's side to a historic treble
with 52 goals across all competitions. Mbappe, meanwhile, came in third after🍌 finishing
as the World Cup's top scorer.
And when asked about Messi's Ballon d'Or win while on
international duty with France,🍌 Mbappe replied: "I am not scared that it [the award]
has escaped me. Messi deserves it.
"In the evening of the🍌 18th [December 2024], I knew
he'd won the World Cup and the Ballon d'Or. I had a great season, like🍌 Haaland, but
when you win the World Cup, that makes the difference."
However, some have criticised
Messi's win with former Norwegian🍌 international Gunnar Halle claiming Haaland "probably
should have won". Speaking to Mirror Football earlier this month, Halle said: "He won
🍌 the Premier League, the FA Cup, the Champions League and scored almost 60 goals – I’m
not sure what else🍌 he could have done!
"He was fantastic but I think people were
expecting Messi to win it. They hoped that Erling🍌 would, but because of the World Cup I
think it was always going to be Messi. I'm not sure that🍌 anyone in Norway was too
surprised.
Image: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images) Pascal Le Segretain/Getty
Images)
"Erling's statistics are incredible, and the way🍌 he has been scoring and the
competitions he has won, he probably should have won. But there you go. That🍌 happens
sometimes. But it certainly won’t change the way that people feel about
him.
"Everywhere you look there are Manchester City🍌 shirts with his name on the back.
Before they would have beenManchester Unitedshirts – you don't see that anymore!
There's🍌 an expectation on him when he plays for Norway, of course there is. But he can
cope with that.
"In fact,🍌 he can cope with everything. With him and (Martin) Odegaard
on the shortlist for the Ballon d'Or, there's real hope🍌 for the future. And the Ballon
d'Or? Don't worry, Erling will win it next season."
Join our new WhatsApp community!
Click🍌 this link to receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat
our community members to special offers,🍌 promotions, and adverts from us and our
partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time🍌 you like. If
you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
