Lionel Messi backs Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal for Ballon d'Or glory
Cameron Smith
- 31 Oct 2023 15:27 GMT
- 3 min read
Lionel Messi has backed Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal to fight with Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior for the Ballon d’Or in years to come after winning his eighth award on Monday evening.
The Argentina star extended his existing record of seven Ballon d’Or wins after his triumph in the 2023 edition was confirmed in Paris.
Messi was voted as the best player at the 2022 World Cup as he guided Argentina to victory, while he also helped Paris Saint-Germain win Ligue 1 in his final season at the club.
READ MORE: 'You are the best!' - Football reacts to Messi's Ballon d'Or win
The Barcelona legend beat Haaland (second) and Mbappe (third) to win the award after a historic year in which he finally lifted the famous World Cup trophy.
Focus has already shifted to the 2024 Ballon d’Or, with Jude Bellingham an early 3/1 favourite according to the bookies.
The England international won the 2023 Kopa Trophy in Paris on Monday night after a stellar season with Borussia Dortmund earned him a €103 million summer move to Real Madrid.
READ MORE: What Bellingham must do to win the 2024 Ballon d'Or
Bellingham has scored 13 goals in 13 Los Blancos games so far this season and has been backed to win the Ballon d’Or next year by many.
However, Messi believes that La Masia star Lamine Yamal will rival Bellingham and the other big talents in world football for the biggest individual prize in the sport. Messi did not state that Yamal would win the 2024 award, but he believes the young Spamiard has a chance in the future.
What has Messi said?
After winning his eighth Ballon d’or, Messi told L’Equipe: “There is a generation of players that can compete in the coming years. There are the cases of [Erling] Haaland, [Kylian] Mbappé, Vinicius [Junior]. I don’t know, there are many young people.
“Lamine [Yamal], who is now very young and is already playing at Barcelona and being important ... will play a prominent role and fight for it in the future too. There are always good players. A very nice stage is coming for us to enjoy.”
