Marc Cucurella of Real Madrid
Photo by Christof Koepsel/Getty Images
The race for the Ballon d’Or appears to have finally boiled down to two names, and, reminiscent of the past, it is between a Barcelona and a Real Madrid star.
Los Blancos’ candidate is Kylian Mbappe, especially after the Frenchman’s special goalscoring season where he was the top-scorer in virtually every major tournament he played. The lacuna, however, is that he won no silverware.
Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal, meanwhile, won La Liga and the FIFA World Cup, but his form at the international event was relatively substandard.
Cucurella’s Ballon d’Or pick
Kylian Mbappe, Real Madrid player
A tough fight for the Ballon d’Or. (Photo by Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)
Real Madrid and Spain defender Marc Cucurella was asked in a recent press conference who he would hand the Ballon d’Or to if the power of deciding the result was vested in him.
Caught in a conflict of interest between his club, where Kylian Mbappe plays, and his country, where Lamine Yamal plays, the defender played the topic down and provided a diplomatic response.
“If I could vote, I would vote for myself,” he said jovially.
Elaborating on whether he had a favourite in mind for the award and who he felt the righteous winner would be, Cucurella said,
“No matter who wins, I will be happy. All candidates are teammates. I leave all this to those who vote.”
Finally, he concluded the topic by stating that irrespective of the result, the winner would be a teammate of his – either for club or for country.
“The advantage is that, regardless of the winner, I’m sure I have a little something as a teammate.”
Different for club and country
Marc Cucurella, Real Madrid player
Cucurella struggled against Atletico Madrid. (Photo by Mateo Villalba Sanchez/Getty Images)
Marc Cucurella ended the club football spell with a horrendous showing against Atletico Madrid – a game after which his position as a starter has been called into question in some capacity.
Moving back to the Spanish national team setup, however, he immediately picked up where he left off at the FIFA World Cup and has been performing at a great level for his country.
Needless to say, Jose Mourinho and Co. will hope the player can bring the same form back to Madrid this time around for they have a gruelling set of fixtures awaiting them after the break.
Jose Mourinho, Head Coach of Real Madrid
Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images
Kylian Mbappe, Real Madrid player
Not doing enough off the ball. (Photo by Mateo Villalba Sanchez/Getty Images)
Not sharp enough in front of goal either. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)