According to Didier Deschamps, French forward Ousmane Dembélé, who has had an outstanding season on the field, fully deserves the Ballon d’Or award.
The France coach sees even greater achievements ahead for Dembélé, who was named the Champions League Player of the Season. Thanks to his brilliant performances in the second half of the season, playing a key role in Paris Saint-Germain’s treble victory, Deschamps believes Dembélé is the frontrunner in this year’s Ballon d’Or race. He is confident that Dembélé will edge out his main rival, Yamal Lamin.
Dembélé has had an exceptional campaign with PSG this season. He was instrumental in ending the club’s long quest for a Champions League trophy, leading the attack by scoring 8 goals and assisting 6 in 15 matches.
No other PSG player has scored more goals than the 28-year-old this season. His consistent performances earned him the tournament’s Best Player award.
Not just in the Champions League, Dembélé also won Ligue 1 and the French Cup this season. Across all competitions, he has scored 33 goals and provided 15 assists in 49 matches for PSG.
Meanwhile, Barcelona’s 17-year-old sensation Yamal has also had an impressive season, contributing to his club’s wins in La Liga, the Spanish Cup, and the Spanish Super Cup.
The Ballon d’Or battle is expected to be mainly between Yamal and Dembélé, with the trophy set to be awarded to one of them this September in Paris.
In the Nations League semi-final on Thursday, France and Spain will face off, where both Dembélé and Yamal are likely to represent their national teams.
The Ballon d’Or topic came up during the pre-match press conference, where Deschamps said the 24-year-old Dembélé “definitely deserves” the award this year.
“Since he (Ousmane Dembélé) is French and given how he’s celebrating the season, my vote is certainly for him. The ongoing Nations League and Club World Cup could also play some role here. If I have to choose, I will definitely pick Ousmane,” Deschamps said.
Asked about what the Spaniards might think, he added, “If you ask me, I don’t think they would say the same thing. But judging by the season Ousmane is having, he is clearly ahead and deserving of the award.”
In the other Nations League semi-final, Portugal defeated Germany 2-1 to reach the final, which will be held this Sunday at Munich’s Allianz Arena. It was on this very pitch last Saturday that PSG thrashed Inter Milan 5-0 to claim their first-ever Champions League title.
