Barca boasts 4 nominees for the prestigious men's Ballon d'Or: Lamine Yamal, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski, and Pedri. Experts consider Yamal and PSG's Ousmane Dembele the frontrunners. Last season, Barca secured La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the Spanish Super Cup, while PSG claimed the Champions League, Ligue 1, the French Cup, and the French Super Cup.
In the Kopa Trophy for best young men's player, Yamal and teammate Pau Cubarsi are nominated for the second consecutive year. They face competition from Desire Doue, Joao Neves (PSG), Estevao (Chelsea), Dean Huijsen (Real Madrid), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Rodrigo Mora (Porto), Kenan Yildiz (Juventus), and Ayyoub Bouaddi (Lille). Last year, Yamal won the award with a record 113 points, far ahead of second-placed Arda Guler (26 points) and third-placed Kobbie Mainoo (20 points).
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Yamal wins the Kopa Trophy at the 2024 Ballon d'Or Gala. Photo: EFE |
Yamal wins the Kopa Trophy at the 2024 Ballon d'Or Gala. Photo: EFE
Barca's coach, Hansi Flick, is nominated for the Johan Cruyff Trophy for best men's coach. He's up against Luis Enrique (PSG), Enzo Maresca (Chelsea), Antonio Conte (Napoli), and Arne Slot (Liverpool). Enrique, with 4 titles, is currently favored, but Maresca also impressed by winning the Conference League and Club World Cup, including a 3-0 victory over PSG in the Club World Cup final.
Barca is also nominated for Best Men's Team, competing against PSG, Botafogo, Chelsea, and Liverpool. PSG, with its quadruple win, is the top contender.
In the women's awards announced on the evening of 7/8, Barca secured 6 nominations: Ballon d'Or (Aitana Bonmati, Caroline Hansen, Patri Guijarro, Ewa Pajor, Claudia Pina, Alexia Putellas), Best Team, Best Young Player (Vicky Lopez), and Best Goalkeeper (Cata Coll). Last season, Barca's women's team won all domestic titles but lost 1-0 to Arsenal in the Champions League final.
The Catalan club is only absent from the nominations for Best Men's Goalkeeper and Best Women's Coach. The Best Men's Goalkeeper nominees include Alisson (Liverpool), Bounou (Al Hilal), Chevalier (Lille), Courtois (Real Madrid), Donnarumma (PSG), Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa), Oblak (Atletico Madrid), Raya (Arsenal), Sommer (Inter Milan), and Sels (Nottingham Forest). Donnarumma, with his outstanding Champions League performance, is considered the favorite. Emiliano Martinez has won the award for the past two years.
The 5 nominees for Best Women's Coach are: Sonia Bompastor (Chelsea), Renee Slegers (Arsenal), Arthur Elias (Brazil national team), Justine Madugu (Nigeria national team), and Sarina Wiegman (England national team).
The winners will be announced at the Ballon d'Or Gala in Paris, France, on 22/9.
Thanh Quy (according to Marca)
