Eden Hazard and Olivier Giroud have both backed Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi to win his eighth Ballon d’Or during Monday night’s ceremony in Paris.
As reported by Fabrizio Romano, Messi is the strong favourite to win the prize. It would come after a year in which the Argentinian won the World Cup for the first time, and according to Hazard, who announced his retirement earlier this month, it is this accolade that should determine the winner. “It wouldn’t be logical to not give the Ballon d’Or to the best player in history in the year that he won the World Cup,” said the former Chelsea and Real Madrid forward.
Giroud has also backed Messi to win the Ballon d’Or and beat international teammate Kylian Mbappé to the prize. “Who won the World Cup? That’s how it often works. On top of that, he played an important role in the World Cup so I think the Ballon d’Or will be given to Lionel Messi,” France’s record goalscorer told Téléfoot.
Last year, Karim Benzema became the first Frenchman to win the Ballon d’Or since Zinédine Zidane, after he guided Real Madrid to the Champions League. Despite Mbappé also shining in the World Cup, scoring a hat-trick in the final, he looks set to miss out on the prize.
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
