Stoichkov has no doubts about Lamine and the Ballon d'Or: "he will win it whenever he wants"

Less than three weeks before the delivery of the 2025 Ballon d'Or, there are many authorized voices that ratify Lamine Yamal's favoritism for the most prestigious award given by the magazine 'France Football'. In the case of Hristo Stoichkov, the former Bulgarian player revealed the panorama regarding the 2025 edition.

"This year I don't think so after what Paris Saint-Germain has done. He is there, among the top three. People like you (the journalists), who have votes, it depends on you too. If I'm lucky I will go up to the podium to give it. We'll see how it is", commented the Barça legend during the Spanish National Team's visit to Bulgaria for the World Cup qualifiers.

Stoichkov won the Ballon d'Or in 1994, after his great performance in the United States World Cup (he was the top scorer with 6 goals). In addition, he won the Golden Boot in 1990 (with CSKA Sofia) and was the top scorer in the Champions League in 1994. With the Blaugrana team, he won 11 titles between 1990 and 1998, scoring 177 goals in 255 official matches.

Hristo Stoichkov believes that Lamine Yamal will be Ballon d'Or sooner or later

Although Hristo Stoichkov sees Ousmane Dembélé as the favorite this year for his titles with Paris Saint-Germain (he won the domestic treble and the Champions League), the Plovdiv native is convinced of Lamine Yamal's talent and ability to win the Ballon d'Or in a short time.

"He is going to win it, when and how he should decide it, it doesn't depend on us", said the Bulgarian. The new '10' of Barcelona got his first nomination with only 17 years and could become the youngest winner in history. In this regard, Stoichkov also referred to the comparisons with Leo Messi and other mega 'cracks'.

"Own name, own path. Don't compare yourself with others, because comparing is never good. I never wanted to compare myself with anyone and I don't like to be compared with me", he said regarding the future of the Mataró native.

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Stoichkov defends Lamine Yamal's privacy

Lamine Yamal in a LaLiga match with Barcelona.

On the other hand, the former player of Barça, CSKA Sofia and Parma in Europe ruled out that Lamine Yamal's private life could bring him problems in the long term. Since his 18th birthday, there has been much talk about his sentimental life and environment, but the Bulgarian legend trusts in the maturity of the Blaugrana 'crack' to deal with stardom.

"I don't think he's going to get distracted. The environment, either. Many times we do things that we don't have to say. The environment, where he goes out, who he goes out with... I also went out and what happens", commented Stoichkov. In that sense, he made it clear that everything happens by keeping your head in order and always performing at your best.

"Then you have your training sessions, you have time to be with your teammates and you have time to talk to the coach. When you go out to train, you have to train. And when you have to play, you have to play". Finally, Hristo made it clear how much the press influences in causing noise outside the field.

"There is too much mixing with private life. This smells bad to me. When private life is mixed... why he dresses like that, where he eats... I don't get into private life", pointed out the also former coach of 59 years, who retired from the benches in 2013 after almost a decade of little success.

• 🔍Discover more records, statistics and curiosities in our Lamine Yamal Data Center, a unique space to follow the evolution of the Barcelona star