Didier Deschamps believes Kylian Mbappe deserves to win Ballon d’Or

Speaking to Téléfoot’s Saber Desfarges, France manager Didier Deschamps said that he believes that Kylian Mbappé (24) should win the Ballon d’Or.

Outgoing Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema (35) won the Ballon d’Or last year but hasn’t been able to reproduce his form in 2023. Lionel Messi (35), who won the World Cup with Argentina is expected to be one of the frontrunners for this year’s award. The former Barcelona forward has 16 goals and 16 assists in 32 Ligue 1 appearances this season but has already made his final appearance for Les Parisiens.

Despite losing the World Cup final, Mbappé finished the World Cup as the top scorer with eight goals, whilst Messi scored seven. Mbappé also finished as Ligue 1’s top scorer with 29 goals, ahead of Alexandre Lacazette, who scored 27.

In a yes or no section of an interview on Téléfoot, Deschamps, who following the World Cup extended his contract with Les Bleus until 2026, said that Mbappé deserves to win the Ballon d’Or this year. He also believes that the AS Monaco academy product will beat Olivier Giroud’s goalscoring record with the France national team, whilst he said that he didn’t hesitate to nominate the Paris Saint-Germain forward captain earlier this year.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle