Kylian Mbappe praises Lamine Yamal amidst Ballon d’Or battle: ‘Very talented player’ | OneFootball

From a state of absolute uncertainty last week, a lot has changed in the Ballon d’Or conversation over the past seven days.

From Kylian Mbappe’s exclusive interview that he is the deserving winner to Lamine Yamal soon following suit, the conversation is now down to two names, although there are still other contenders.

From Barcelona’s perspective, Yamal is the deserving choice and the club president, vice president and others have all spoken about the same. His performances this season, moreover, have been stellar.

Mbappe’s words on Lamine

Real Madrid superstar and Ballon d’Or contender Kylian Mbappe spoke to the media via AS in depth about his hope of winning the award for the first time in his career.

Mbappe had words of respect for Yamal. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

After elaborating on how his numbers speak for themselves and explaining why he is the best candidate for the award, Mbappe was asked about Lamine Yamal as a contender and competitor.

In response, the Frenchman had only words of praise and did not get into any sort of debate.

“I think he is a very talented player and I have the feeling that he will have a great career. I wish him the best,” he said humbly.

Is this Lamine’s year?

Barcelona may not have won the UEFA Champions League last year, but they did win La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup and were a force to reckon with on the domestic level.

Is this Yamal’s year? (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

Lamine Yamal was instrumental in the Catalans’ success in Spain, and in that sense, was one of the best players in the world. His FIFA World Cup win with Spain only furthers his chances of winning.

The big limitation in his campaign, however, was his numerically poor World Cup campaign. He only scored once in the tournament and was visibly still not at 100% after his injury.

Mbappe does indeed have a strong case for the award, but he did not win any silverware whatsoever for either club or country.

The decision, thus, will not be simple and the race may come down to the wire with no clear frontrunner.