Ballon d’Or 2022: Kevin De Bruyne should be favourite, but the fact he isn’t is a testament to Man City team-mates
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Published 11/04/2022 at 19:28 GMT
Karim Benzema, Robert Lewandowski, Mohamed Salah and Kylian Mbappe are the quartet currently leading the way with the bookmakers when it comes to the Ballon d’Or. Sitting sixth with the bookies is a certain Kevin De Bruyne, the best player within the squad of the Champions League favourites. What does that say about the award? Or is that simply a compliment to City?
Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City celebrates after scoring a goal to make it 1-0 during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Liverpool
Image credit: Getty Images
Goals, goals, goals. It’s all about goals.
Mohamed Salah starts the season on fire. Hand him the Ballon d’Or. Robert Lewandowski scores the quickest Champions League knockout hat-trick. Hand him the Ballon d’Or. Kylian Mbappe scores the winner against Real Madrid and shines over Lionel Messi and Neymar. The Ballon d’Or is his to lose. Back-to-back hat-tricks for Karim Benzema? Okay now he should win the Ballon d’Or.
As it stands, the quartet are the leading contenders to win the Ballon d’Or, with Benzema currently favourite with the bookmakers having taken the reigns of Real Madrid’s bid to reclaim La Liga and reach the Champions League final.
Mbappe and PSG may no longer be in the Champions League, but Benzema, Lewandowski and Salah all remain, with Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Liverpool looking to reach the semi-finals this week.
Success in Europe often goes some way towards deciding the Ballon d’Or winner, and given the shake-up by France Football means it will be awarded before the World Cup plays out this winter, the Champions League could prove decisive.
It says something, therefore, about Manchester City that despite being favourites to win the competition, not a single player features in the top-five contenders for the esteemed individual award.
City’s players are unlikely to be overly fussed. Only teams win titles, and with this squad still fighting on three fronts, they are on the cusp of a feat that has not been achieved by an English club for 23 years.
One player does, however, stand out. Kevin De Bruyne, who is spearheading this treble-chasing charge by hitting peak form at just the right time, and – in a world where goal statistics evidently matter – is getting on the scoresheet too.
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'What he has done for me is everything' - Guardiola lauds De Bruyne
He scored the only goal of City’s narrow win against Atletico Madrid last week, and opened the scoring against Liverpool in the 2-2 draw on Sunday too. If it really is all about the goals, then his timely contributions in the big games should not go unnoticed.
On top of the above, he also scored the late equaliser at Liverpool in October, the winner against Chelsea in January, and the first two goals against Manchester United in March.
He’s even on a roll of six goals in seven games for City, but of course, it’s not just about the goals with De Bruyne, who for his overall performances picked up man-of-the-match awards against Atletico and in the star-studded affair with Liverpool.
Had Riyad Mahrez chipped in a late winner on Sunday, De Bruyne’s assist would have been played a thousand times over since – the pass that won the league. But irrespective of the eventual miss, it was still much-admired, and was a perfectly-weighted eye-of-the-needle pass that few are capable of making.
That isn’t anything new, either, but City boss Pep Guardiola will be delighted the Belgian is hitting his stride at the business end of the season.
“I like that he is a player who does not just make a lot of assists, he is scoring a lot. I told him he has to score more goals to reach another stage,” Guardiola said after the 2-2 draw with Liverpool.
“He is scoring a lot of goals and making chances, knowing the position he is playing is so difficult against Liverpool because they are so narrow. And his vision for the last pass is exceptional.
“It’s true he struggled in the first part of the season a lot with the injuries from the Champions League final and the European Championships.
“He has been at this level many times. The year we made 100 points at that level Kevin was incredible.”
Few would begrudge De Bruyne if he were to win the Ballon d’Or, but evidently he needs silverware to overhaul the quartet of goalscorers.
Winning the Champions League would likely see De Bruyne's odds tumble. A treble? That'd make him favourite. And with a squad the envy the continent over, his City team-mates could be the reason why he gets an accolade he would truly deserve.
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