It’s been a tough couple of months for former Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappé as his chances of winning the Ballon d’Or have slipped through his hands.
The Parisians lost in the UEFA Champions League semifinals to Borussia Dortmund. The 25-year-old’s lack of an outstanding performance in the tie resulted in the elimination. Nonetheless, Mbappé had an opportunity to redeem himself at UEFA Euro 2024.
However, the Real Madrid star didn’t have the tournament he might have wanted. In the first group stage game, Mbappé suffered a nose injury and failed to score a goal from open play as France crashed out in the semifinals.
CBS Sports reporter Jonathan Johnson appeared on the latest PSG Talking podcast and noted that Mbappé’s new Real Madrid teammate is the odds-on favorite to win the Ballon d’Or.
Jude Bellingham lifted the Champions League trophy and now has a chance to win the Euros this weekend with England. As a result, Johnson believes that Bellingham will be lifting the individual honor this year.
“I think Bellingham’s overdue [for] a really convincing performance in this year as it’s not been the best tournament for him at an individual level,” Johnson said. “But then again, it’s not been the best of tournaments for many of the top stars at an individual level. You’ve got some very unexpected performers across both of the international tournaments this summer. I don’t think anyone saw James Rodríguez performing the way that he has in Copa América with Colombia, for example.
“So sometimes it takes maybe an unexpected hero to really get the results over the line and maybe that’s what we’re going to need now because we know that Harry Kane hasn’t exactly hit the heights expected of him either but I do think that even if Bellingham is not at his best but is still part of a winning team for both England and Real Madrid that is very difficult to see past him for Ballon d’Or though.”
