De la Fuente backs Spaniard for Ballon d’Or as Kane and Yamal contend | OneFootball

Luis de la Fuente says a Spaniard should win the Ballon d’Or, with Harry Kane and Lamine Yamal viewed among the leading contenders.

“Of course, there are great players in England and Germany. But I think a Spaniard has to win it, because our players are the best in the world in many respects, and you simply cannot overlook them. It's hard to believe that no Spaniard can win the award,” he told Sport Bild.

Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane is a leading candidate for the prize, with the winner due to be announced in October.

Spain also have five other nominees: Rodri and Pau Cubarsí, both Barcelona, Marc Cucurella of Real Madrid, and Paris Saint-Germain pair Fabián Ruiz and Ferran Torres.

“Lamine Yamal has many advantages: he is only 19 years old. He made his debut for the national team when he was 16. At that age, he was doing things on the pitch that I had never seen before. And that is despite the fact that there have been players like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo who were exceptional at a young age.”

“But of course, it is our job to coach and develop him as well as possible so that he can get there. That goes beyond simply playing football. He also needs to be mentally strong enough to deal with setbacks.”

Source: BuLi News

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”