The three finalists for the European Football Association (UEFA) Player of the Year have been revealed. Lionel Messi, Elling Holland, and Kevin De Bruyne.
And now the focus is on the bigger prize: the Ballon d’Or. This is because the winner of the UEFA World Player of the Year has a good chance of winning the Ballon d’Or. Last year, Karim Benzema won the Ballon d’Or after winning the UEFA Player of the Year award.
In this situation, Spain’s Marca said, “Messi is the favorite to win his eighth Ballon d’Or. His performance at the World Cup is unrivaled.”
Messi is currently the world’s most decorated Ballon d’Or winner. She has won it seven times (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021). If he wins the 2023 Ballon d’Or, it will be the first “eight Ballon d’Or” in the world.
“Messi’s competition could be Holland, Kylian Mbappe and Rodri,” Marca said. For the 2023 Ballon d’Or, the 30 nominees will be announced on September 6 and the winner will be crowned on October 30.”
Messi won the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The final piece of the puzzle of Messi’s career has been put together. Messi had won every trophy he could possibly have. After winning the World Cup, Messi was truly recognized as the GOAT (Greatest of all time).
He won the World Cup Final MVP, the World Cup Golden Ball, and the Silver Boot (7 goals and 3 assists). He went on to win the French Ligue 1 title, scoring 16 goals and providing 16 assists. He was the Ligue 1 assists leader.
Holland completed Manchester City’s first-ever treble. They won the English Premier League (EPL), FA Cup, and UEFA Champions League (UCL).
He set an EPL single-season record with 36 goals and was the top scorer in the UCL with 12 goals. Last season, he totaled 53 goals and nine assists. He was named the EPL Player of the Year.
Mbappe was the World Cup runner-up in Qatar, World 바카라 Cup Golden Boot winner (8 goals), and Ligue 1 top scorer (29 goals). He became only the second player in World Cup history to complete a hat trick in the final. Along with the treble, Rodriguez was named UCL Final MVP and UCL Most Valuable Player. He also won the Nations League title, final MVP, and Nations League MVP.
Meanwhile, Messi spoke to U.S. media about his thoughts on winning the Ballon d’Or.
“As I’ve said many times, it’s important to be recognized as an individual and win the Ballon d’Or. But what’s more important to me is for the team to win the award. I’ve been lucky to achieve everything in my career. After the World Cup, I didn’t think about the Ballon d’Or. The biggest prize for me was winning the World Cup. If the Ballon d’Or comes, great, and if it doesn’t, nothing happens.”