Espanyol director backs Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal for Ballon d’Or: ‘Would deserve it’

Espanyol director backs Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal for Ballon d’Or: ‘Would deserve it’ With Spain winning the 2026 FIFA World Cup convincingly, members of the La Roja squad are strong contenders for all individual awards scheduled for the coming months. The Ballon d’Or, needless to say, steals the limelight. Surprisingly, however, no single player stood out as Spain’s single-biggest difference maker in the event, for the side won with complete participation and contribution from players across the field. Considering accomplishments from the club level and the impact on the team for both club and country, Lamine Yamal stands out as a top candidate for the award and Barcelona have been backing his candidacy with everything. The likes of Kylian Mbappe and Harry Kane, however, stand out as top competitors given their numbers for club and country.  What Yamal has in his favour over the other candidates, however, is the World Cup that he won with Spain. Ironically, what works against him is also his average individual performance at the event. Espanyol director backs Yamal One of the frontrunners for the award. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images) Espanyol’s sporting director Monchi spoke to the media at a recent event via SPORT where he was asked in depth about his current role at the Catalan club and other topics. One of the most interesting questions he was faced with, however, was on the Ballon d’Or and who he saw as the most fitting candidate to win the prestigious award. Surprisingly, Monchi had no doubts and picked Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal as his choice for the accolade, putting aside all the rivalry between the two Catalan sides. “It’s complicated. I think there is a case for three or four players who can qualify for it,” he began modestly. “I do shoot for being Spanish, I think Lamine would deserve it,” he added. Two top contenders for the award (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images) Continuing on his opinion on the Ballon d’Or, however, the sporting director also stressed how there is indeed no single favourite. “But I also imagine that the French will think that Mbappé deserves it. And so we can continue. And the English, maybe Harry Kane.” Finally, the sporting administrator of Espanyol concluded that the battle for the award and the final decision will both be controversial. “It’s not easy. It will always arouse controversy,” he concluded.