The defeat in the final against Portugal (2-2, 5-3 p.) deprived Lamine Yamal of his second official title with Spain. However, this does not overshadow, far from it, his great 2024/25 season, in which he was a figure of Hansi Flick's team, winner of the national treble with FC Barcelona.
In that sense, the Azulgrana youth player remains the favorite to win the 2025 Ballon d'Or despite Ousmane Dembélé's titles with Paris Saint-Germain. The Frenchman won the treble (League, Cup and Champions), in addition to the French Super Cup, but in their only match, the Azulgrana '19' took the best part in the Nations League.
Lamine Yamal is still favorite for the Ballon d'Or, but Dembélé...
And the exhibition of the '19' of Spain in the semifinal of the Nations League contrasted with the gray performance of the Vernon player. While Yamal scored a double and took the MVP of the match, 'Dembouz' contributed little or nothing to the French attack in the 76 minutes he was on the field.
To make matters worse, Dembélé left injured from the match played in Stuttgart, with a muscular problem that will prevent him from playing the group stage of the Club World Cup. Hopefully, the 'Mosquito' will reach the round of 16 or quarter-finals, depending on how far PSG goes in the tournament.
That's how the 28-year-old winger could add more extra 'points' in the Ballon d'Or voting if, finally, Luis Enrique's team wins the cup in the United States. After his consecration in the Champions League, Paris arrives as a great candidate for a competition in which Barça will not be.
Beyond this, in individual performance, Lamine has nothing to envy Ousmane. The Barça 'crack' closed the 24/25 at an exceptional level, adding 18 goals and 23 assists in 56 matches. The Paris striker, on the other hand, scored 33 goals and 15 assists in 50 matches.
| Indicator | Lamine Yamal | Ousmane Dembélé |
|---|---|---|
| Matches played | 56 | 50 |
| Minutes played | 4.643 | 3.380 |
| Goals | 20 | 33 |
| Assists | 23 | 15 |
| Titles | 3 | 4 |
Other candidates for the 2025 Ballon d'Or: will there be a surprise?
Along with Lamine and Dembélé, Barça and PSG have other favorites for the 'France Football' award. Raphinha and Pedri are candidates for Barça, one as the best midfielder of the 24/25 in Europe and the other as the leader in goal involvements (57) in the five major leagues.
In addition, the Brazilian was the Pichichi of the Champions League with 13 goals. In terms of honors, Vitinha boasts four trophies in the season, after winning the treble with Paris and the Nations League with Portugal. His records, however, are much more discreet (7G/3A), although he can still add another title in the Club World Cup.
Further back appears Kylian Mbappé. Although the '9' of Real Madrid did not win any title in 24/25, obtaining the Golden Boot (he scored 43 goals in LaLiga) keeps him in 'the race', added to the possibility of playing the World Cup with the 'merengues'.
- Raphinha (FC Barcelona): 34 goals, 23 assists and 3 titles.
- Pedri González (FC Barcelona): 6 goals, 8 assists and 3 titles.
- Vitinha (PSG): 7 goals, 3 assists and 4 titles.
- Kylian Mbappé (Real Madrid): 43 goals, 5 assists and Golden Boot 2025.
Thus, we only have to wait for the announcement of the Ballon d'Or nominations on August 13 and the gala, scheduled for September 22 in Paris, to know the winner of the award. Will the titles or the individual performance weigh on the voters' criteria this year? Will PSG's great year be decisive in favor of Dembélé?
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