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Photo by Kevin Hodgson | MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
We’re headed towards the back end of the year, and that means that it’s almost awards season in football.
Indeed, the Ballon d’Or ceremony is on the horizon, and this year it is truly almost impossible to pick a winner.
There are a number of players who can stake a claim to the Golden Ball, from Lamine Yamal to Kylian Mbappe to Harry Kane.
Arsenal, of course, had a year to remember after winning the Premier League and making the Champions League final, and according to Ian Wright, speaking to ITV, one of the Gunners’ key players should be in the Ballon d’Or mix.
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Ian Wright backs Declan Rice for Ballon d’Or podium
Wright was asked to pick the three players he thinks are worthy of a podium place in this year’s Ballon d’Or rankings.
The pundit acknowledged his own bias towards Arsenal, but ultimately, he did pick Declan Rice as the third best player in the world over the past 12 months.
Wright would then pick Kylian Mbappe in second place, before crowning Harry Kane as his personal Ballon d’Or favourite.
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Rice was fantastic for Arsenal last season, but it’s hard to imagine he will get this sort of placement in the Ballon d’Or rankings.
Defensive midfield players are, often, massively under-represented in these sorts of awards, while in a World Cup year, performances at that tournament will likely dictate many of these placements.
Unfortunately, Rice wasn’t one of the top performers at the World Cup. He was underwhelming for England in their midfield, and was substituted on multiple occasions due to underperformance in those big games.
Who knows? Maybe if Arsenal had won the Champions League and England had won the World Cup, maybe Rice would’ve been a Ballon d’Or contender, but, to be honest, it is hard to imagine Rice getting anywhere near the top three as Wright suggests he should.
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Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images
A graphic reading: "Which player will Arsenal most regret not signing?!" Image shows Morgan Rogers, Julian Alvarez, Vinicius Jr and Victor Osimhen.
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Photo by Mark Leech/Offside via Getty Images